US judge grants Russian-born Harvard scientist bail in immigration case
By Nate Raymond
(Reuters) -A federal judge in Vermont on Wednesday ruled that the continued detention by immigration authorities of a Russian-born scientist at Harvard University was unjustified, removing a key hurdle to the researcher being released from U.S. custody more than three months after she was detained at an airport in Boston.
U.S. District Judge Christina Reiss said during a hearing in Burlington, Vermont that it appeared immigration authorities had detained Kseniia Petrova in February and canceled her visa without any factual or legal basis for doing so after discovering frog embryo samples in her luggage.
"What happened in this case was extraordinary and novel," Reiss said.
Reiss was not able to order Petrova's full release from government custody, as federal prosecutors in Boston earlier this month criminally charged her with illegally attempting to smuggle the frog embryo samples into the country.
She is now being held by the U.S. Marshals Service, and a judge in her criminal case would need to decide whether to grant her bail as well when she goes before the court as soon as next week.
But Reiss said bail in her related immigration case was appropriate as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has indicated that it intends to re-detain Petrova if a judge in her criminal case grants her bail.
"At today's hearing, we demonstrated that Kseniia is neither a danger to the community nor a flight risk, and does not belong in immigration detention," her lawyer, Gregory Romanovsky, said in a statement.
The Justice Department declined to comment.
Petrova, 31, was detained at Logan International Airport in Boston on February 16 on her return from a trip to France. Petrova, who works at Harvard Medical School, has said her boss asked her to bring back frog embryo samples for ongoing experiments.
Petrova's detention comes amid efforts by Republican President Donald Trump's administration to ramp up deportations and revoke student visas as part of its wide-ranging efforts to fulfill his hardline immigration agenda.
Federal judges in Vermont have similarly ordered immigration authorities to release from custody students at Tufts University and Columbia University who were arrested after engaging in pro-Palestinian advocacy on campus.
Reiss, who is presiding over a lawsuit Petrova filed challenging her immigration detention, said Petrova raised a substantial claim that "her current detention is the product of a process that has nothing to do with the merits of this case."
Reiss said the embryos were "non-hazardous, non-toxic, non-living, and posed a threat to no one," and that Petrova had established a likelihood of proving they did not qualify as the type of biological material she needed to declare to customs.
Reiss said that while Petrova asked at the airport to be allowed to return to France, the government instead detained her with the intent to deport her to Russia, a prospect Petrova has said she fears after protesting Russia's war in Ukraine.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
34 minutes ago
- USA Today
Russia's 'Pearl Harbor': What to know about Ukraine's audacious drone strike
Russia's 'Pearl Harbor': What to know about Ukraine's audacious drone strike Ukraine unleashed more than a hundred drones smuggled deep into Russia in what it called its most damaging attack yet. Show Caption Hide Caption Donald Trump 'disappointed' with Vladimir Putin President Donald Trump told reporters he was 'disappointed' with Russian President Vladimir Putin, referencing latest attacks on Ukraine. Ukraine said the strikes on Russian strategic bombers had caused $7 billion in damage. "It had an absolutely brilliant outcome," Zelenskyy said. 'It is impossible to restore these losses,' Rybar, a pro-Kremlin Telegram channel, said. WASHINGTON − Ukraine destroyed dozens of enemy bombers using a horde of drones smuggled deep into Russia in a stunning attack that Russian war bloggers are calling Moscow's Pearl Harbor. It was the most damaging Ukrainian attack on Russia in the three years since Moscow invaded. Ukrainian intelligence said the coordinated strikes on June 1 took a $7 billion toll on Russia's military and demolished more than a third of Moscow's strategic cruise missile carriers, including planes cabable of carrying nuclear warheads. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the massive attack, which he said used 117 drones, his country's "longest-range operation." More: War in Ukraine rages on as Putin's 3-day ceasefire nears: updates in maps Russia's Pearl Harbor? "It had an absolutely brilliant outcome," Zelenskyy said on Telegram. "Russia has had very tangible losses, and justifiably so." Oksana Markarova, Kyiv's ambassador to the United States, called the attack a "very successful defensive operation in Russia against Russian aircraft that, on a daily basis, bomb our hospitals and schools and kill our kids." Speaking at an AI event in Washington, Markarova said it was "the best example of how innovation can and should work in defense." With Ukraine set to meet Russia for U.S.-brokered peace talks the next day and amid aggressive Russian advances on the battlefield, the ambitious June 1 attack showed neither side is counting on a breakthrough in negotiations. "We hope that the response will be the same as the US response to the attack on their Pearl Harbor or even tougher," Russian war blogger Roman Alekhin wrote on Telegram, comparing the Ukrainian strike to the 1941 Japanese raid on a U.S. base in Hawaii. 'It is impossible to restore these losses,' reported Rybar, a pro-Kremlin Telegram channel. Ukrainian 'Spider's Web' The operation, code-named "Spider's Web," was characteristic of the style of warfare Ukraine has made its brand as it attempts to undercut Russia's larger military – flooding the zone with cheap, deadly drones. But the scope of this attack set a new precedent. The drones, strapped with explosives, were hidden inside the roofs of wooden sheds, which were dropped off by trucks at the outer edge of Russian military bases, a Ukrainian security official told Reuters. The roofs then opened by remote control, unleashing the drones to swarm the military bases. Ukraine's intelligence service said 41 Russian aircraft were hit at four air bases stretching from the Finnish border to Siberia. One targeted base, in the Irkutsk region, lies more than 2,600 miles from the front lines, making it the farthest target Ukraine has hit during the conflict. Russia's defense ministry acknowledged in Telegram messages June 1 that drones launched "from an area in close proximity to airfields resulted in several aircraft catching fire." The operation came a day after Russia launched a massive overnight attack on Ukraine using 472 drones and seven missiles, according to Ukraine's air force – the most drones launched in one operation throughout the conflict. Separately on June 1, Ukraine struck two highway bridges in Russian regions close to its borders, killing seven people and injuring 69. One bridge collapsed on a train carrying nearly 400 passengers to Moscow, according to Russian investigators. Three of the missiles and 372 drones were downed, the air force said. Peace talks restart as Trump loses patience with Russia Ukraine launched the operation a day before Ukraine and Russia will meet for U.S.-mediated negotiations in Istanbul to end the grinding conflict. President Donald Trump has pressed both sides for a ceasefire. Earlier this year, his focus was trained on Ukraine, sparking tension with Zelenskyy that exploded into public view during a combative Oval Office meeting in late February. But in recent weeks, Trump has grown more frustrated with Russian President Vladimir Putin's dug-in position in negotiations. In his starkest criticism of Putin to date, Trump wrote that Putin had "gone absolutely CRAZY" after Russia launched a barrage of drones and missiles into Ukrainian cities last weekend that killed a dozen people. "I've always had a very good relationship with Vladimir Putin of Russia, but something has happened to him. He has gone absolutely CRAZY!" Trump wrote in a May 25 Truth Social. Trump said days later in the Oval Office that he was "very disappointed" that "people were killed in the middle of what you would call a negotiation." (This article was updated to correct the misspelling of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's last name.)
Yahoo
37 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Shares dither, dollar falls as trade angst persists
By Rae Wee SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Asia shares edged cautiously higher on Tuesday while the dollar fell to a six-week low as erratic U.S. trade policies clouded over markets and investors turned defensive ahead of key developments later in the week. U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping will likely speak this week, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Monday, days after Trump accused China of violating an agreement to roll back tariffs and trade restrictions. The call between the two leaders will be closely watched by markets to see if the tariff-induced blow to global stocks and the dollar this year could get some reprieve or ratchet up, as trade tensions between the world's two largest economies simmer. Data on Monday showed U.S. manufacturing contracted for a third straight month in May and suppliers took the longest time in nearly three years to deliver inputs amid tariffs. "The May ISM showed tariff pressure is beginning to bite for manufacturers who are seeing slowing activity, longer lead times and declining inventories," said economists at Wells Fargo. China's factory activity in May also shrank for the first time in eight months, a private-sector survey showed on Tuesday, indicating U.S. tariffs are starting to hurt manufacturers. The gloomy global trade situation left U.S. futures falling early in the Asian session, failing to sustain the slight gains made during the cash session on Wall Street overnight. Nasdaq futures and S&P 500 futures were both down 0.2% each. In Europe, EUROSTOXX 50 futures advanced 0.28% and FTSE futures added 0.15%. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan reversed early losses to last trade 0.6% higher, while Japan's Nikkei rose 0.66%. "Trump really does have sentiment in the palm of his hands once again," said Matt Simpson, senior market analyst at City Index. "I suspect we'll hear about 'a really great call' or words to the effect," he said, referring to the expected call between Trump and Xi. "But we'll need to wait for confirmation from China, who tends to take their time on these matters. Until we get concrete confirmation, price action could be shaky and vulnerable to false also have the June 4 deadline for 'best trade deals' from U.S. trading partners to factor in." In China, mainland markets returned from an extended break on a muted note, with the CSI300 blue-chip index up 0.23% while the Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.3%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index jumped more than 1%, rebounding from Monday's one-month low. PAYROLLS ON DECK The dollar fell to a six-week low against a basket of currencies to 98.58 on Tuesday, ahead of Friday's U.S. nonfarm payrolls data, which will offer a timely reading on the pulse of activity in the world's largest economy. A rise in unemployment is one of the few developments that could get the Federal Reserve to start thinking of easing policy again, with investors having largely given up on a cut this month or next. The euro scaled a six-week top earlier in the session before paring some of its gains to last trade at $1.1426, while sterling dipped 0.09% to $1.3532. A softer U.S. jobs report would be a relief for the Treasury market, where 30-year yields continue to flirt with the 5% barrier as investors demand a higher premium to offset the ever-expanding supply of debt. [US/] The Senate this week will start considering a tax-and-spending bill that will add an estimated $3.8 trillion to the federal government's $36.2 trillion in debt. "The evidence suggests term premium being re-priced considerably higher to account for U.S. fiscal, trade, credit, and geoeconomic risks alongside some hedge against (U.S. dollar) debasement," said Vishnu Varathan, head of macro research for Asia ex-Japan at Mizuho. The dollar was up 0.35% against the yen at 143.20, reversing some of its 0.9% decline from the previous session. Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said on Tuesday it is important to make policy judgements without any preset ideas as uncertainty over global tariff policies remains extremely high. In commodities, oil prices rose on concerns about supply, with Brent crude futures climbing 0.88% to $65.20 a barrel, while U.S. crude surged 1% to $63.13 per barrel. [O/R] Spot gold rose to a roughly one-month high of $3,392.03 an ounce. [GOL/] Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Axios
an hour ago
- Axios
Jewish lawmakers fear they're next after antisemitic attacks
Jewish members of Congress are worried by a spate of attacks aimed at Jews — and are openly saying they may be next on the target list. Why it matters: There has been a sharp rise in antisemitism and threats against lawmakers in recent years. For some Jewish representatives, the two trends are eerily correlated. "The number of times in the course of a week I'm called a 'Jewish demon' is pretty unsettling," Rep. Greg Landsman (D-Ohio) told Axios. Landsman said "most" Jewish members are "facing these very unsettling and potentially dangerous situations," pointing to the pro-Palestinian encampment that was erected outside his house in Cincinnati. Driving the news: Capitol Hill was rocked last month when two Israeli embassy staffers were fatally shot outside an American Jewish Committee meeting at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C. The suspect, Elias Rodriguez, shouted "free, free Palestine" as he was arrested by police. "I have had a hard time getting the image of being shot and killed out of my head. It happens almost every time I'm in a big crowd now," Landsman said in a statement after the shooting. The incident came after a man who set fire to Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro's official residence cited the Jewish governor's stance on the war in Gaza as a factor. State of play: Concerns about Jewish safety spiked again this week after a man yelling "free Palestine" threw Molotov cocktails at attendees of a Boulder, Colorado, rally advocating for the release of hostages held by Hamas. The attack left at least eight people — four women and four men, aged 52 to 88 — hospitalized. What they're saying: Rep. Brad Schneider (D-Ill.) said in a phone interview that he "increased our investment in security" after the D.C. attack. "It's a dangerous world," he told Axios. "I will not let this become normal ... and I will not let this force me to back away or fail to do what I need to do representing all my constituents in the 10th district." Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) said: "I've always thought we were in jeopardy and jeopardized when we were on the Capitol campus." And Rep. Laura Friedman (D-Calif.) added: "The Jewish community is very much on edge ... and elected officials in general, I think, are feeling less safe." Zoom out: Beyond their personal safety, several lawmakers previewed a renewed push to fund the Nonprofit Safety Grant Program, particularly to provide security for houses of worship and faith-based organizations.
