Columbia Student Who Sued Trump Can't Be Detained, Judge Rules

MORNINGSIDE HEIGHTS, NY — A 21-year-old Columbia University student who sued the Trump administration for trying to deport her over her involvement in pro-Palestinian protests on campus can't be detained, a judge ruled on Tuesday.

U.S. District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald said in Manhattan court that the government had not laid out enough facts about its claims against Yunseo Chung, the Associated Press reported.

“I don’t think there is any evidence in the record that she would be a danger to the community,” Buchwald said in court before issuing the ruling, according to a New York Post report.

The lawsuit was filed Monday by Chung, a junior at Columbia and a legal permanent resident of the United States who moved to the country from South Korea when she was 7 years old.

According to the lawsuit, Chung joined a demonstration on March 5 to protest what she believed to be the excessive punishments meted out by the Columbia administration to student protesters. She was later identified in news reports as one of several protesters arrested after a sit-in at a library on the nearby Barnard College campus.

Days later, the lawsuit claims the federal government began "a series of unlawful efforts" to arrest, detain and remove Chung from the country because she participated in the protest.

According to court documents, a federal law enforcement official told Chung that her permanent resident status was being revoked and an administrative warrant for her arrest was issued on March 8.

The lawsuit also claims that federal law enforcement agents came looking for her at her parents’ home and executed search warrants at two residences on Columbia's campus, including Chung’s dormitory. According to the lawsuit, the agents were seeking documents relating to Chung’s affiliation with Columbia University, including travel and immigration records.

In a statement Monday, the Department of Homeland Security said she had “engaged in concerning conduct,” including being arrested at a protest.

The lawsuit comes less than two weeks after Mahmoud Khalil, a recent Columbia graduate and pro-Palestinian activist who was detained by the Trump administration earlier this month, joined seven current students in suing the school. Their lawsuit seeks to block Columbia from sharing its disciplinary records with the government, according to court documents.

• RELATED: 8 Students Sue Columbia To Block Records Release To Feds

The Associated Press contributed to this report.