A federal appeals court has directed the Biden administration to move Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish PhD student at Tufts University, from Louisiana to Vermont for a bail hearing. Ozturk has spent more than six weeks in immigration custody after being arrested for her pro-Palestinian activism.
The 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals in New York decided on Wednesday that Ozturk should be transferred to Vermont, dismissing the government’s effort to postpone a prior court order. The ruling opens the way for Ozturk to appear at a bail hearing in federal district court, moving her closer to potential release.
Ozturk, a Fulbright scholar from Turkey, was arrested in March in Somerville, Massachusetts, after the US State Department canceled her student visa. The cancellation followed her co-signing of an op-ed published in Tufts’ student newspaper denouncing the university’s policy on the Gaza conflict and advocating divestment from companies affiliated with Israel.
Her arrest and transportation to Louisiana generated national interest, especially because of a viral video of masked agents arresting her. Civil liberties activists contend that her detention is unconstitutional and an effort to suppress dissent.
The Biden administration argued that immigration issues have to be addressed where the individual is being detained, in their case, Louisiana. But the legal team for Ozturk accused the government of “forum shopping” to guarantee that the case was heard by a conservative court.
The appeals court said Ozturk’s case centers on her arrest and detention, not deportability, and can move ahead in Vermont. Although the court affirmed her further detention, the court added her retaliatory-arrest claims arising from protected speech present serious questions of constitutional consequence.
The Department of Homeland Security has until May 14 to extradite Ozturk, although it can appeal to the Supreme Court. Her bail hearing could be rescheduled accordingly.
