Judge Turns Down Federal Government’s Bid to Move Mahmoud Khalil’s Legal Case

The case was already shifted once, from New York to New Jersey.

Mahmoud Khalil on the Columbia University campus in New York at a pro-Palestinian protest encampment on April 29, 2024. Ted Shaffrey/AP Photo

A federal judge on April 1 declined the U.S. government’s request to move a legal case brought by an arrested Columbia University protester to the state where he is being held.

U.S. District Judge Michael Farbiarz, who is based in New Jersey, ruled that Mahmoud Khalil’s case will stay in New Jersey because that is where Khalil was detained when his lawyers lodged a habeas corpus petition that urged a federal court to order their client’s release.

“The Court’s jurisdiction is not defeated by the Petitioner having been moved to Louisiana,” the judge wrote in a 67-page ruling.

Khalil was allegedly involved in protests at Columbia University in 2023 against Israel’s response to the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by the Hamas terrorist group.

He was arrested by immigration agents on March 8. In a March 20 filing, government lawyers requested that the Khalil case be transferred to Louisiana because that’s where he is in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody.

“Nobody disputes that if Khalil filed his petition today, it would have to be in the Western District of Louisiana. The only question before this Court is whether that principle no longer holds, because Khalil was temporarily in New Jersey when he improperly filed his original habeas petition in New York. The answer is no,” they said at the time.

Khalil’s lawyers had opposed a move and urged the court to release their client as the case proceeds.

Farbiarz said that in habeas cases, the court with jurisdiction is the one that oversees the area where the petitioner is located at the time the case is filed.

When the petition was filed, Khalil was in New Jersey.

The government’s arguments were not persuasive, Farbiarz said. That included the claim that Khalil failed to name his immediate custodian in New Jersey.

“He did not need to. That custodian was not only unknown to the Petitioner’s lawyer, but virtually unknowable to her. And so the Petition could clear the bar by doing what it did—naming the Petitioner’s ultimate custodian, the Secretary of Homeland Security,” the judge wrote.

Khalil’s wife, Noor Adballa, said she was relieved the case will stay in New Jersey. “This is an important step towards securing Mahmoud’s freedom, but there is still a lot more to be done,” Adballa said in a statement.

Amy Greer, an attorney representing Khalil, said the ruling reflected progress.

“Today we moved one step closer to vindicating Mr. Khalil’s rights by challenging his unlawful detention and the administration’s unconstitutional and retaliatory actions against him,” Greer said.

The judge did not rule on Khalil’s attempt to secure release.

A different judge previously transferred the case, filed after Khalil’s arrest in March, from New York to New Jersey.

Khalil’s lawyers had said they thought he was in detention in New York when they filed the petition, which accused federal immigration officers of violating the constitutional rights of the Syrian native by allegedly arresting him for his participation in pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University.

Federal officials have said Secretary of State Marco Rubio determined that the presence of Khalil in the United States would have potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences. They also said that Khalil omitted details about his involvement with a United Nations group when applying for permanent residency.