ACLU Comment on Biden Administration Sending Troops to Southern Border

MIAMI — A federal court has granted a temporary restraining order blocking enforcement of Florida Senate Bill 4-C (SB 4-C), an extreme anti-immigrant law that created new state crimes targeting immigrants entering and living in Florida. The court ruled that the plaintiffs — including two individuals and two grassroots membership organizations, the Florida Immigrant Coalition (FLIC) and the Farmworker Association of Florida (FWAF) — are likely to succeed in showing that SB 4-C is unconstitutional. The court found the law likely violates the Supremacy Clause and the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution in that it encroaches upon an exclusively federal power to control immigration and the movement of interstate commerce. “This ruling is a critical victory not only for immigrants and their families across Florida, but all of us who hold dear core principles of our Constitution,” said Bacardi Jackson, executive director of the ACLU of Florida. “The court’s order halts a dangerous and discriminatory law that sought to criminalize people for simply moving within the United States. Florida’s leaders may want to score political points by targeting immigrants, but the Constitution doesn’t allow it. We’ll continue fighting until SB 4-C is struck down permanently.” SB 4-C created sweeping state crimes that made it a felony for certain immigrants to enter Florida and mandated jail time without bond. Plaintiffs argued that the law placed countless Floridians at risk of arrest and detention under an unconstitutional law. “We applaud today’s ruling and are committed to putting a permanent end to S.B. 4-C.,” said Oscar Sarabia Roman, staff attorney at the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project. “S.B. 4-C is inhumane, damaging, and clearly unlawful under more than a century of Supreme Court precedent.” “The Constitution makes clear that immigration enforcement is the role of the federal government, not state politicians,” said Amy Godshall, legal lellow and immigrants’ rights attorney at the ACLU of Florida. “This law was a reckless power grab that endangered communities and violated the basic rights of people who call Florida home. The court’s order sends a strong message that Florida cannot bypass federal law to carry out its own anti-immigrant agenda.” The court found that the plaintiffs demonstrated a strong likelihood of success on the merits, and that ongoing enforcement of the law would result in irreparable harm. The TRO temporarily blocks the state from enforcing SB 4-C and sets a hearing on April 18 to consider a permanent preliminary injunction. “This law instilled fear in our communities and punished people for simply existing,” said Paul R. Chavez, director of litigation & advocacy at Americans for Immigrant Justice. “The court’s decision recognizes what we’ve known all along: SB 4-C is not only unconstitutional, it’s inhumane. We’re grateful the court stepped in to prevent further harm and protect the rights of our clients and countless others across Florida.” This ruling is a crucial first step toward immigrant justice—and a powerful reminder that when communities stand up, we can push back against oppressive policies. As the legal fight continues, advocates, families, and allies across Florida will keep organizing, speaking out, and demanding a future where all people—regardless of where they come from—can live with dignity, safety, and freedom. Ruling: https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2025/04/Order-Granting-Florida-TRO.pdf

Whether someone with a valid visa within the U.S. can be arrested and detained on the basis of their political speech and advocacy.

BOSTON – The U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts today ruled that the challenge to ICE’s unlawful detention of Rümeysa Öztürk, a PhD student at Tufts University, should continue in Vermont. Ms. Öztürk was grabbed, arrested, and detained in Somerville, Massachusetts by plainclothes federal agents in apparent retaliation for an op-ed she co-authored in a student newspaper over a year ago. For nearly 24 hours, Ms. Öztürk’s attorney was unable to locate her. More than 16 hours after a federal court ordered that Ms. Öztürk not be moved out of Massachusetts in order to “preserve the status quo,” her counsel was kept in the dark about Ms. Öztürk’s whereabouts as ICE quickly and quietly moved her to three separate locations in three different states on her way to Louisiana. Yesterday, Ms. Öztürk’s legal team argued that if the court allowed this case to play out in Louisiana, this would reward the Trump administration’s deliberate and secretive hopscotch attempt to unlawfully game the system. Legal counsel successfully argued that if the case did not stay in Massachusetts, a transfer to the District of Vermont would be appropriate. Over 20 friends, colleagues, and professors, including the president of Tufts University, have sent letters of support to the court detailing Ms. Öztürk’s dedication to her work and her community and asking for her release. Ms. Öztürk is represented by Mahsa Khanbabai, the American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Massachusetts, CLEAR, and Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP. The following are quotes from Ms. Öztürk’s legal team: Mahsa Khanbabai of Khanbabai Immigration Law: “Today’s ruling brings us one step closer to restoring Rümeysa Öztürk’s rights, and sends a clear message that the government cannot manipulate jurisdiction in order to target human rights defenders, in violation of their First Amendment rights. Let’s be clear: Rümeysa should never have been arrested or detained by ICE in the first place. What matters most right now is our continued fight to ensure her immediate release and safe return home.” Jessie Rossman, legal director at ACLU of Massachusetts: “The Court rightfully, and with appropriate urgency, rejected the Trump administration’s attempted manipulation to move Rümeysa Öztürk’s case to Louisiana. The speed of this ruling speaks volumes, and this decision is a crucial next step. Ms. Öztürk is currently detained for co-authoring an op-ed in a campus newspaper, and that is an emergency that a court must address as quickly as possible. We are ready to defend Ms. Öztürk’s rights in Vermont to bring her back to her loved ones and life in Somerville.” Sidra Mahfooz, staff attorney, ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project: “With this ruling, the Court has rightfully reaffirmed that Rümeysa Öztürk's case belongs in Vermont — significantly closer to her community, her counsel, and her colleagues. While the trauma ICE has inflicted on her for writing an op-ed is irreparable, this is the first step towards bringing her home." Mudassar Toppa, staff attorney at CLEAR, a legal nonprofit and clinic at CUNY School of Law: “With today's order from the Court, Ms. Öztürk's battle for justice and redress for the government's flagrantly unconstitutional conduct will continue at a venue which is far more appropriate than the one the government sought. We will continue to tirelessly advocate for Ms. Öztürk to be expeditiously released from detention and for all her claims to be vindicated in Court.” Vasudha Talla, Of Counsel at Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP: “The government doesn’t get to play keep-away with Ms. Öztürk's liberty and well-being. We look forward to defending her First Amendment rights in court.” The decision can be found here.

BOSTON — Members of Rümeysa Öztürk’s legal team argued today before the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts in Boston that Ms. Öztürk’s challenge to her unlawful detention and attempted deportation by ICE should remain in Massachusetts, rather than Louisiana, where the Trump administration took Ms. Öztürk after she was arrested and where she is currently detained. “I am a Ph.D. student working with children and youth,” said Rümeysa Öztürk in a statement dictated to her attorney. “We know that injustice in the world and systemic brutality towards people of color has long-lasting negative effects on children, youth, and other communities. My life is committed to choosing peaceful and inclusive ways to meet the needs of children. I believe the world is a more beautiful and peaceful place when we listen to each other and allow different perspectives to be in the room. Writing is one of the most peaceful ways of addressing systemic inequality. Efforts to target me because of my op-ed in the Tufts Daily calling for the equal dignity and humanity of all people will not deter me from my commitment to advocate for the rights of youth and children.” Rümeysa Öztürk, a Ph.D. student at Tufts University, was grabbed, arrested, and detained in Somerville, Massachusetts by plainclothes ICE agents last week in apparent retaliation for a Tufts Daily op-ed she co-authored last year. Last Tuesday, a Massachusetts court ordered the government to not remove Ms. Öztürk from Massachusetts without prior notice. However, sometime after that order, ICE officials transferred Ms. Öztürk to Louisiana without notifying the court, her counsel, or Department of Justice counsel. “The government quietly and quickly hopscotched Ms. Öztürk across multiple states in a concerted effort to evade accountability. She never should have been grabbed from her street in Somerville and secretly moved over 1,300 miles away from her community,” said Carol Rose, executive director of the ACLU of Massachusetts. “We are asking the court to affirm that Ms. Öztürk’s case belongs in Massachusetts — near her friends, community, and legal counsel.” For nearly 24 hours, Ms. Öztürk’s friends, family, and counsel could not locate or contact her. When her attorney was finally able to speak with her, they learned that she had suffered an asthma attack while en route to Louisiana. “Snatching a student off the street in retaliation for an op-ed is a disturbing escalation of the administration’s callous disregard for our civil liberties,” said Noor Zafar, senior staff attorney at the ACLU. “Ms. Öztürk’s case should stay in Massachusetts, where she was cruelly ripped away from her community. We will not stop fighting until this injustice is righted, and until this kind of abusive tactic is unimaginable in America once again.” Ms. Öztürk is a former Fulbright scholar who came to the United States on a student visa and has not been charged with or accused of any crime. Over 20 friends, colleagues, and professors, including the president of Tufts University, have sent letters of support to the court detailing Ms. Öztürk’s dedication to her work and her community and asking for her release. “If the government is afraid of a Ph.D. student writing an op-ed denouncing genocide, then we should be seriously concerned about the integrity of our government,” said Mahsa Khanbabai of Khanbabai Immigration Law. “Rumeysa Ozturk did what we teach all people in America to do in the face of injustice — she spoke up. We will continue fighting until Rumeysa is back in Massachusetts where she belongs, and her rights and freedom are restored.” “From the moment a swarm of ICE agents abducted Ms. Öztürk in broad daylight, the government has spared no effort to evade accountability and deny her due process,” said Mudassar Toppa, a staff attorney at CLEAR, a legal nonprofit and clinic at CUNY School of Law. “We will likewise spare no effort to ensure the government's egregious unlawful conduct does not go unchecked, and that Ms. Öztürk and others like her can continue to express their sincerely held beliefs about Palestinian human rights without fear of retaliation.” “The federal government disappeared Rümeysa in front of horrified onlookers and spirited her away to a detention center in Louisiana, over a thousand miles away,” said Sonya Levitova, an associate at Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP. “No matter what the government says its rationale is for pursuing Rümeysa’s deportation, the reality is this: the government is concocting violations of immigration law to chill and retaliate against speech it doesn’t like. That’s illegal and antithetical to a free society.” Ms. Öztürk is represented by Mahsa Khanbabai, the American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Massachusetts, CLEAR, and Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP. More information about this case can be viewed here: https://www.aclum.org/en/cases/ozturk-v-trump