A Columbia University student activist who was detained by the U.S. government over his participation in pro-Palestinian demonstrations has the right to challenge the legality of his detention, but the case should be heard in New Jersey, rather than in New York or Louisiana, a judge ruled Wednesday.
Mahmoud Khalil, a legal U.S. resident with no criminal record, was detained by federal immigration agents on March 8. From there, he was taken to an immigration detention center in New Jersey, where he spent the night. Then he was taken back to New York, put on a plane and flown to an immigration facility in Jenna, Louisiana.
