Judge Proceeds with Bail Hearing for Tufts University Student Detained by ICE, Without Awaiting Transfer

Published: Friday, May 9, 2025 at 12:11 pm

**Tufts Student's Bail Hearing Proceeds Despite ICE Detention in Louisiana**

A federal judge in Vermont is moving forward with a bail hearing for Rumeysa Ozturk, a 30-year-old Turkish student from Tufts University, despite her current detention in a Louisiana immigration center. The hearing, scheduled for Friday, will be held remotely, with Ozturk appearing via video. This decision comes after over six weeks since her arrest in a Boston suburb.

Ozturk's lawyers are arguing that her detention violates her constitutional rights, including free speech and due process, and are demanding her release. The U.S. Justice Department initially asserted that an immigration court in Louisiana, handling separate deportation proceedings, had jurisdiction. However, U.S. District Judge William Sessions ordered Ozturk's transfer to Vermont, where she was previously held. A federal appeals court upheld this order, mandating her relocation to ICE custody in Vermont by May 14th. Judge Sessions, however, chose not to delay the bail hearing, proceeding with it regardless of the transfer timeline.

Ozturk was apprehended by immigration officials on March 25th and transported through New Hampshire and Vermont before being flown to Louisiana. Her student visa was revoked days prior, a fact her lawyers claim she wasn't informed of. The case was initially filed in Massachusetts but was later transferred to Vermont.

The situation stems from an op-ed Ozturk co-authored in *The Tufts Daily* last year, criticizing the university's response to student activists advocating for Palestinian rights. A State Department memo cited this op-ed as a reason for visa revocation, alleging her actions undermined U.S. foreign policy and created a hostile environment for Jewish students. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson also claimed, without providing evidence, that Ozturk supported Hamas.

Keywords: Rumeysa Ozturk, Tufts University, ICE, immigration detention, bail hearing, Vermont, Louisiana, student visa, deportation, free speech, due process, Palestinian rights, Hamas, The Tufts Daily, Boston, Turkish student, Judge William Sessions, immigration court, detention center.

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