Judge Says Khalil’s Deportation Case Can Be Heard in New Jersey

A New York federal judge on Wednesday transferred the case of Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University graduate detained by the Trump administration this month, to New Jersey, where his lawyers will continue their efforts to seek his release.

Mr. Khalil, a leader of pro-Palestinian protests on Columbia’s campus, had been arrested and swiftly transferred to Louisiana. The Trump administration has sought to deport him, though he is a legal permanent resident who has not been accused of a crime.

Mr. Khalil’s legal team, which includes lawyers from the American Civil Liberties Union, has been trying to move his case out of Louisiana since he was transferred there. Were his case to be heard in the state, a conservative appeals court there could set a broad precedent for deportations.

The New York judge, Jesse Furman, ordered federal authorities not to remove Mr. Khalil from the country and on Wednesday, issued the order, moving the case to New Jersey.

Judge Furman noted that Mr. Khalil’s lawyers had accused the government of punishing him for his participation in the demonstrations, and that his First and Fifth Amendment rights had been violated.

“These are serious allegations and arguments that, no doubt, warrant careful review by a court of law,” he wrote. “The fundamental constitutional principle that all persons in the United States are entitled to due process of law demands no less.”

But the judge found that the case would be properly heard in New Jersey, where Mr. Khalil was in detention when his lawyers first filed their petition for his release.

Judge Furman left in place his order barring federal authorities from deporting Mr. Khalil.

The White House has accused Mr. Khalil of spreading antisemitism and promoting literature associated with Hamas terrorists. Mr. Khalil’s lawyers deny that he has done so.

Marco Rubio, the secretary of state, has cited a little-used law to justify Mr. Khalil’s detention. The measure says that Secretary Rubio can initiate deportation proceedings against any noncitizen whose presence in the United States he can reasonably deem a threat to the country’s foreign policy aims. Secretary Rubio has said that it is a policy of the United States to restrict the spread of antisemitism.

Mr. Khalil is married to an American citizen who lives in New York. Their first child is due in April.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated shortly.