Bond denial for detained Tufts student 'unconstitutional': Attorneys
5 Min Read
Rumeysa Ozturk's attorneys assert that the immigration court’s decision to deny bond for her constitutes “a complete violation of due process and the rule of law.”
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Hundreds of people gather in Somerville, Mass., on March 26, 2025, to demand the release of Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish student at Tufts University, who was arrested by federal agents Tuesday night (AP)
A Turkish PhD student and former Fulbright scholar has been denied bond by an immigration judge following her detention after co-authoring a campus newspaper op-ed about Gaza, The Guardian reported on Thursday.
Rumeysa Ozturk, a student at Tufts University, was apprehended by plainclothes US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents on 25 March near her Massachusetts home and transferred across three states before being placed in a Louisiana detention facility—despite not being charged with any crime.
Federal agents detained Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish doctoral student at Tufts University, near her off-campus residence in Massachusetts on Tuesday. Ozturk was on her way to an Iftar meal when she was apprehended, according to the Muslim Public Affairs Council (#MPAC).
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) March 27, 2025
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One-paragraph memo as justification
On Wednesday, an immigration judge denied her release on bond, deeming her both a “flight risk” and a “danger to the community.” However, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) had only argued that she was a flight risk, according to legal filings submitted by Ozturk’s attorneys that evening.
According to the petition, the DHS’ case against Ozturk is based entirely on a “one-paragraph Department of State memorandum” that revoked her visa, citing her co-authorship of an opinion piece that expressed solidarity with a group later temporarily banned from the university campus.
'Fully constitutionally protected speech'
“They don’t even show anything more than what was published in the op-ed,” noted Esha Bhandari, an American Civil Liberties Union attorney representing Ozturk in federal court.
“It’s fully constitutionally protected speech, no crimes at all … If this is allowed, anyone could be punished for anything they say,” she emphasized.
The immigration court’s decision to deny bond for Ozturk constitutes “a complete violation of due process and the rule of law,” her attorneys said, according to Anadolu Agency.
“The immigration courts are cowering to the Trump administration’s attempts to silence advocates of Palestinian rights,” asserted attorney Marty Rosenbluth in a statement issued by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which is representing Ozturk in federal court in Vermont.
Canary Mission on the hunt
Ozturk's detention followed online targeting by the pro-"Israel" website Canary Mission, which criticized her for co-authoring a March 2024 opinion piece in The Tufts Daily student newspaper. The article denounced the university’s response to "Israel’s" war on Gaza, which has resulted in the killing of more than 51,000 Palestinians.
'This attack on free speech is despicable'
Ozturk's legal team is urging a federal judge in Vermont to order her immediate release, which would override the immigration judge’s detention ruling. At the very least, they are requesting she be transferred back to Vermont by Friday. They have also asked the court to expedite the case, requesting a hearing no later than 23 April.
“It’s simply unconstitutional to keep her in detention for this,” indicated Bhandari. “We think that the court can decide it on the papers under the governing legal standards, but if it wants to hold a hearing, we’re asking for a hearing later in April. Time is of the essence; Rumeysa’s health is not well in detention.”
Mahsa Khanbabai, another attorney representing Ozturk in immigration court, said the Trump administration’s exclusive reliance on her op-ed as grounds for deportation constitutes a direct attack on free speech, a right protected under the First Amendment of the US Constitution.
“This attack on free speech is despicable, but we won’t be deterred," she said. We will keep fighting until Ms. Ozturk is safely returned home to Massachusetts.”
Selective targeting
Court documents filed Wednesday detail that Ozturk has suffered six asthma attacks during her detention. In one instance, an officer dismissed her symptoms as “all in her mind,” and medical staff reportedly provided no care.
Ozturk's case reflects a broader trend targeting individuals affiliated with US universities who have expressed pro-Palestinian views. Numerous student visas have been revoked or entry denied since the Trump administration adopted a hardline stance against pro-Palestinian activism.
Recently, a Louisiana judge also approved the deportation of Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University graduate student, after the federal government deemed him a "national security" threat.
In late March, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that the Department of State had revoked at least 300 student visas over pro-Palestinian protests—figures that have reportedly more than doubled since.
Bhandari noted that individuals like Ozturk had “no opportunity to protect their rights” before their legal status was abruptly altered by the government.
Read more: No evidence linking Tufts student to 'antisemitism', 'terrorism'
