What is a green card? Lawyer breaks down Mahmoud Khalil case
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — With the case of a Columbia University graduate making national headlines, some may be left wondering what a green card is or how someone who is a 'permanent resident' can be deported. In this week's Ask Isaacs, 6 News' Lori Tucker and Attorney Greg Isaacs discuss the Mahmoud Khalil case.
In the United States, a green card, or what is sometimes called a 'permanent resident card' allows someone who is not a citizen to live and work permanently in the U.S., according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Some of the common individuals who are eligible for green cards include:
Spouses of a U.S. citizen
Academic professionals
Religious workers
International media broadcasters
Asylees (people seeking asylum) or refugees
Victims of crime or human trafficking.
In the case of Mahmoud Khalil, he came to the United States under a student visa in 2022 to pursue a graduate degree at the University of Columbia. In 2023, he married his wife, who is a U.S. citizen, and became a legal permanent resident last year.
What to know about Mahmoud Khalil, the Columbia protester arrested by ICE and facing deportation
Khalil was detained by U.S. Department of Homeland Security on Saturday, March 11 in upper Manhattan. The agency has since accused Khalil of leading 'activities aligned to Hamas, a designated terrorist organization.'
One of the perplexing points of the case is that agents told Khalil's pregnant wife that he was being detained because his student visa had been revoked, and that his green card was also revoked, a lawsuit from Khalil's attorneys filed challenging his detention claims.
While Khalil has not been charged with a crime, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Tuesday that the administration is moving to deport him through a section of the Immigration and Nationality Act that gives the secretary of state the power to deport a noncitizen on foreign policy grounds. Khalil was a leading pro-Palestinian activist at Columbia University, President Donald Trump has argued on social media that Khalil is a 'Radical Foreign Pro-Hamas Student.'
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Generally, green card holders can be deported if they are convicted of certain crimes, such as using or abusing drugs, failing to advise immigration authorities of a change of address within 10 days of the move, or providing material support to a terrorist group. The Isaacs Law Firm explains that they can also be deported without a criminal convictions if they are proven to abuse drugs or be addicts.
Some convictions are also grounds for a person's green card to be revoked and for them to be deported. Those offenses include:
Aggravated felonies – such as murder, drug trafficking or rape
Crimes involving 'moral turpitude' or that are considered 'immoral, unethical or [an] unjust departure from ordinary social standards' – such as fraud, theft, or assault
Any firearm offense
Trafficking
Or crimes of domestic violence, stalking, violation of a protective order, or child abuse, neglect or abandonment.
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If you have a legal question, send it to AskIsaacs@wate.com. To watch full episodes of Ask Isaacs, click here.
WATE's Lori Tucker and Attorney Greg Isaacs answer your legal questions from the WATE Alert Desk on Wednesdays at 2:30 p.m. and on WATE Channel 6 at 5:30 p.m.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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