Overview

• Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish PhD student, remains detained in a Louisiana ICE facility without criminal charges as her deportation case is stayed pending a May 6 court hearing.
• The Second Circuit Court of Appeals will determine whether district courts have authority to block deportation orders in cases involving alleged First Amendment violations.
• A coalition of free speech organizations, including the Cato Institute and PEN America, filed an amicus brief arguing Ozturk’s detention violates constitutional protections for political speech.
• The brief draws parallels to historical abuses like the 1798 Aliens Friends Act and warns that such actions align the U.S. with authoritarian regimes suppressing dissent.
• In a related case, Vermont Judge Geoffrey Crawford granted bail to Mohsen Mahdawi, citing substantial claims that his arrest targeted his political expression.