Judge says Trump’s bid to deport Mahmoud Khalil is unconstitutional

Michael Farbiarz stops short of ordering Khalil released from jail, saying lawyers must first address another charge

The Trump administration's bid to deport Mahmoud Khalil, the Columbia University student and pro-Palestinian activist, is likely unconstitutional, a US judge has said.

In a lengthy order issued Wednesday, Judge Michael Farbiarz wrote that the government's primary justification for removing Khalil - that his beliefs may pose a threat to US foreign policy - could open the door to vague and arbitrary enforcement.