Legal action forces Trump administration to back down on W.Va. student deportation
FAIRMONT — The Trump Administration's project of terminating student visas on specious grounds faced a major setback on Friday after massive legal pushback from international students nationwide.
Among the wave of lawsuits were two by students from West Virginia University and Marshall University. The schools notified Sajawal Ali Sohail and S.V. the federal government had restored their legal statuses.
'This is positive news not just for our two clients in West Virginia, but for international students across the country,' said ACLU-WV, which represents both students. 'We are continuing to monitor the situation closely, particularly the announcement that ICE will be developing new policies for revoking legal statuses.
Sohail, a 25 year-old-undergraduate student at West Virginia University, filed suit against the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Attorney General of the United States, after the federal government revoked his visa and terminated his record in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System.
Sohail's suit joined another filed by Marshall student S.V., who sued the federal government for the same reason earlier this week. The ACLU-WV was able to secure a temporary restraining order protecting S.V. this week. On Friday, Politico reported lawyers from the Justice Department announced in federal court it was reactivating visa registrations for terminated students in the SEVIS system. They also said ICE was developing a policy for SEVIS record termination.
Shauna Johnson, executive director of strategic communications at WVU, said there have been three reversals across the WVU system.
'We continue to work directly with our students affected by status decision changes at the federal level. Circumstances vary which is why we're focused on identifying ways to best support each student. As of now, we are aware of three reversals across the WVU System.'
Sohail's revocation came after the federal government found his name during a criminal record check. In 2022, WVU Police arrested Sohail on one felony count of taking identity of another person, according to magistrate court records. However, Sohail's attorney said WVU reversed the charge after it turned out Sohail and his family had been the victims of the scam.
According to Sohail's complaint, the family, who resides in Pakistan, was short on tuition money for Sohail. They turned to a business acquaintance, Mansoor Alam, who offered to pay Sohail's tuition upfront with the understanding the family would back the loan. However, after the family paid Alam thousands of dollars for tuition, magistrate court records show, Alam disputed the charge and the blame fell on Sohail for making an unauthorized payment.
After discovering the scam, magistrate court records show the state decided not to prosecute, and the judge dismissed the charges. Sparks wrote Sohail wasn't the perpetrator of a crime but the victim of one. Victims of a financial scam, the family ended up having to pay tuition twice.
Sparks wrote in the filing Alam had stolen from numerous individuals and was on the run from Pakistani law enforcement.
Despite the emotional harm from the scam and false accusations, Sohail continued on track for graduation in May 2025. On April 10, Sohail received an email from the school notifying him his SEVIS record had been terminated. The federal government alleged his name had been found in a criminal records check.
'Unfortunately, we cannot provide any further insight into the termination reason and are unable to reverse this decision by the U.S. federal government,' the email states.
Johnson, the school's communications officer, declined to comment on whether the school had confirmed on their own any of the government's claims.
The email goes on to urge Sohail to depart the country immediately, as he had lost both his immigration status and work authorization. The school offered to refer Sohail to outside legal resources such as the WVU Immigration Law Clinic, but cautioned Sohail against remaining in the country while he was out of status.
'Given this sudden notice and the approaching end of the semester, we encourage you to speak with your instructors about the possibility of completing your courses remotely,' the email states. 'We do realize the sudden impact this has on you, your academic career and your future plans. Carruth Center counselors are available to speak with you and to assist with what you may be feeling. Please consider reaching out to them if needed.'
The school also prohibited Sohail from attending class in-person.
Johnson did not elaborate on what the school was doing to support students on a case by case basis. The school's response from April 25 on this question did not change substantively from their response on April 10. Johnson said there 1,031 WVU students on F-1 visas, which is the visa required to pursue a degree at an American higher education institution.
Sohail's lawsuit accuses the federal government of disregard for widespread harm, accusing the administration of basing their actions on such specious grounds they defy credibly. According to Inside Higher Ed, 147 estimated terminations at 48 different schools had already taken place. The publication indicated the estimate was most certainly a fraction of the total, because colleges are reluctant to publicly confirm any student visa revocations because they are anxious to avoid federal scrutiny.
Billy Wolfe, communications director for ACLU-WV, said they are aware other students who have had their visas revoked had an experience similar to the students ACLU-WV represents. He urged students who are still having problems to contact the organization using the legal assistance tab at acluwv.org website. As for WVU's involvement, Wolfe said he wasn't sure what their role has been but that their issue is with the federal government, and not the school.
For now, both students are cleared to return to class.
'We want to be clear that the administration is backing down not because it's the right thing to do,' Wolfe said. 'But, because they have been dragged to court repeatedly and lost again and again.'
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