CONCORD, N.H. - The federal court in New Hampshire said during an emergency hearing today that it would temporarily restore the F-1 student immigration status of a Dartmouth College student who had his status unlawfully and abruptly terminated last Friday by the Trump administration. This temporary block on the termination of his student status will continue until the court makes a formal ruling in his case in the coming weeks.
Gilles Bissonnette, Legal Director of the ACLU of New Hampshire, said, “The court’s temporary restoration of our client’s student status means that he can continue studying and working on what he loves - computer science. International students are a vital community in our state’s universities, and no administration should be allowed to circumvent the law to unilaterally strip students of status, disrupt their studies, and put them at risk of deportation.”
Ronald L. Abramson, Chair of the Immigration Law Group at Shaheen & Gordon, said, “Today’s decision reaffirms the basic principle that a person who follows all the rules should not be subject to losing their immigration status - and everything they have worked so hard to achieve - based upon the Government’s whim. Just as individuals must comply with the law, so should our government.”
The doctoral student, a citizen of China, is studying and researching computer science at Dartmouth College. This past Friday, he was informed by his college via email that his student status had been terminated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The ACLU of New Hampshire and Shaheen & Gordon filed on Monday a lawsuit on behalf of this Dartmouth College student, who had his F-1 student immigration status unlawfully and abruptly terminated on Friday with no specified reason as to why - despite having never committed a crime or traffic violation and having never participated in any protest in the United States or elsewhere.
The lawsuit asks the court to reinstate this student’s F-1 student status, which would allow him to continue his studies.
More information about the case can be found here: https://www.aclu-nh.org/en/press-releases/aclu-nh-files-suit-revoked-student-status-dartmouth-college-student
