“Thank you so much for being here,” Öztürk told the crowd outside the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center before a backdrop of high fencing topped by barbed wire. She wore a light pink blouse, and had a soft smile spread across her face. “I really appreciate you being here, and thanks so much for all the support and love.”
Öztürk’s fight has become emblematic of the pushback against the Trump administration‘s deportation methods, which critics contend are sweeping up immigrants and international students on illegal or spurious grounds, without providing just cause or their right to due process.
The 30-year-old Tufts University PhD candidate from Turkey was detained on March 25, with the only basis the Trump administration citing for her deportation an op-ed she co-wrote for the Tufts student newspaper criticizing the Israel-Hamas war.
US District Judge William K. Sessions III ruled from Vermont Friday that Öztürk had a convincing claim that the government had violated her rights to due process and free speech, and ordered her immediate release.
“Her continued detention cannot stand,” Sessions said from the bench. “Her continued detention potentially chills the speech of the millions and millions of individuals in this country who are not citizens.”
Öztürk’s mouth tightened into a quivering, tearful smile as she listened to Sessions, while one of her lawyers put a hand on her back. At the time, her video feed to the court was muted.
Sessions’ ruling is the latest instance of a federal district judge rebuking the Trump administration for how it’s detaining and deporting immigrants.
In April, a second federal judge in Vermont freed Mohsen Mahdawi, a Columbia University student from the West Bank who was similarly detained and bound for deportation over his protests of the Israel-Hamas war on campus. An appeals court subsequently upheld that decision.
Öztürk’s arrest was captured on video that showed her being suddenly surrounded by agents and whisked off into a waiting vehicle. She was first taken to a facility in Vermont, but within 24 hours was transferred to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Louisiana. Days earlier, the Trump administration canceled her student visa without notifying her.
Because she was in Vermont when her lawyers first contested her detention in a habeas corpus petition, which is a separate legal proceeding from her deportation case, the case fell to a judge there instead of in the administration‘s preferred venue in Louisiana.
Her case made national headlines and “Free Rümeysa” became a rallying cry for people critical of the Trump administration‘s aggressive crackdown on student visa holders. Members of Massachusetts’ congressional delegation visited her in detention and raised alarms over the conditions at the facility.
In ordering her release, Sessions said Öztürk was no danger to the community and that her continued detention was steadily worsening her asthma.
The ruling does not end the government’s efforts to deport Öztürk. But now she can challenge them outside the harsh confines of a detention facility.
Earlier in Friday’s hearing, Öztürk spoke of repeated asthma episodes — 12 attacks “since they first took me” — that left her anxious and gasping for air. She clasped her hands to her chest as she described increasingly severe and long-lasting attacks, triggered by stress and exposure to smoke and cleaning supplies.
“It’s affecting me in a very negative way,” she said.
And then during the hearing, while an asthma specialist who had assessed Öztürk was testifying, an attorney for Öztürk suddenly spoke up: “Rümeysa is actually having an asthma attack right now, and needs to use the bathroom.”
Öztürk coughed and, with permission from the judge, left the room for about 10 minutes before returning. She could be seen coughing into her hand periodically.
Dr. Jessica McCannon, the asthma specialist from Massachusetts General Hospital, said it appears Öztürk’s asthma is worsening and is now “poorly controlled.” If she remained where she was, McCannon said, her asthma would worsen to the point she might need emergency medical services.
Under questioning by Acting US Attorney for Vermont Michael Drescher, McCannon said there is no medical definition for an “asthma attack,” but that people with asthma can experience more acute episodes.
Öztürk’s case comes amid what the Trump administration has called a crackdown on antisemitism on college campuses. The administration has canceled hundreds of student visas and moved to cut federal funding from colleges President Trump paints as left-wing propagandists.
Opponents argue the government is targeting people for their political beliefs.
Öztürk told the court about her PhD program at Tufts for child and human development, with a focus on how children use media. She said she works with people around the world to “create some space to grieve for children.”
“All of them are ours, from all parts of the world,” she said. Her lawyers said she will live in Tufts housing upon release.
Before his ruling, Sessions, the judge, noted she had no criminal record or ties to violence.
“This is a woman who is just totally committed to her academic career,” he said.
Jessie Rossman, a lawyer representing Öztürk for the American Civil Liberties Union, said the government has not disclosed any further explanation for why she’s being held beyond the op-ed.
“The clear message that the government is sending to everyone who is watching is that you can be detained thousands of miles from your home for more than six weeks for writing a single student newspaper article,” Rossman said.
Drescher, the federal prosecutor, said his argument against releasing Öztürk was technical: that Sessions does not have jurisdiction to hear an immigration case. Sessions, supported by a recent appeals court decision, disagreed.
Though immigration matters are typically held in immigration court, Öztürk petitioned a federal district court to be released on the grounds her constitutional rights were violated. The courts eventually ruled her petition for release should be heard in Vermont, because that’s where she was briefly being held when her lawyers first filed for her release.
Before her release Friday, more than a dozen people had gathered outside the ICE Processing center in Louisiana amid storm-like conditions and heavy rain to support Öztürk.
Some came from Houston, New Orleans, and Washington, and included students from Tulane University, union members, and a physician who requested permission to perform a wellness check on Öztürk.
Meanwhile, outside the courthouse in Burlington, Vt., Carl Fritz, 72, stood for hours in the rain, with a hand-painted sign on his walker that read “Free Rumeysa” on one side and “Protect Free Speech” on the other. He was deeply moved when the judge’s decision reached the crowd.
“Brought tears to my eyes,” he said, rain streaming down his face. “That woman was persecuted for her speech, and to see that in our country …”
He trailed off.
“We shouldn‘t have that happen in our country.”
Cotter reported from Boston. McDonnell Nieto del Rio reported from Basile, La. Arsenault reported from Burlington, Vt.
Sean Cotter can be reached at sean.cotter@globe.com. Follow him @cotterreporter. Giulia McDonnell Nieto del Rio can be reached at giulia.mcdnr@globe.com. Follow her @giuliamcdnr. Mark Arsenault can be reached at mark.arsenault@globe.com. Follow him @bostonglobemark.
