Judge orders ICE to free Wisconsin mosque president over free speech claim
Democrats call for closure of Delaney Hall ICE detention center
House Homeland Security Committee Democrats held an unsanctioned field hearing in Newark, N.J., to investigate an ICE detention facility amid recent riots. Congressional reporter Bill Melugin details how Democrats, unable to hold confirmed hearings, hosted their own “shadow hearings” led by Congressman Bennie Thompson. Former DHS Acting Secretary Chad Wolf provides context, emphasizing that Delaney Hall operated under the Obama administration without similar complaints from Democrats.
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
A federal judge on Thursday ordered immigration officials to release the Palestinian head of Wisconsin’s largest mosque from custody, ruling that the man had raised a “substantial” free speech claim that he was targeted for speaking out in support of Palestinian rights.
Sarsour, a legal permanent resident of the United States, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials on March 30; federal officials claimed he was a threat to foreign policy.
However, Sarsour’s lawyers claim that he was arrested for speaking out against Israel.
U.S. District Judge James Patrick Hanlon, President Donald Trump’s nominee, wrote that ICE and Department of Homeland Security attorneys failed to present sufficient evidence to rebut Sarsour’s claims of retaliation against free speech, and that the government also failed to explain why Sarsour was considered a threat after more than three decades of legal residence in the country.
PALESTINE ACTIVIST ACCUSED OF EXPRESSING A WANT TO ‘KILL JEWS’ WINS DEPORTATION CASE
Salah Sarsour, president of the Islamic Society of Milwaukee, smiles shortly after being released from a county jail in Indiana where he was detained following his arrest by ICE agents in March. (Yaseen Najeeb via AP)
“Merely voicing concerns about foreign affairs does not automatically trump First Amendment rights,” Hanlon wrote.
The judge ordered authorities to release Sarsour from the Indiana county jail where he is being held and allow him to return to his home in Milwaukee while his immigration case continues. He was released just a few hours after Hanlon’s decision.
“I’m so relieved to be with my family. I haven’t been able to go out and breathe fresh air for 80 days,” Sarsour said in a statement. he said. “This experience reminds us all that we must fight together for our right to be the voice of the silenced. Wherever I am, I will never stop speaking on behalf of Palestine and humanity.”
Sarsour has Type 2 diabetes and lost more than 30 pounds while in custody. His lawyers said his blood sugar levels were checked only once a month in prison, putting him at risk of organ failure and even death.
His legal team said in a statement that they were very happy to see him released and that he should never have been detained. They said the decision was “a sobering reminder that everyone’s free speech rights will be at risk if the government targets Mr. Sarsour.”
Salah Sarsour is a legal permanent resident of the United States (Muslim Community of Milwaukee via AP)
DHS has described Sarsour as “a terrorist convicted of throwing a Molotov cocktail,” and any allegations of discrimination by ICE agents are unfounded.
Sarsour has no criminal record in the United States, but the agency appears to be citing his 1989 conviction by Israel’s Ramallah Military Court for throwing Molotov cocktails and rocks at Israeli army forces. He was later convicted by the same court in 1995 of attempting to possess weapons and ammunition. Sarsour has denied committing these crimes.
Israeli military courts have faced criticism over the years over allegations of limited due process and high conviction rates for Palestinians, but Israel has withdrawn those accusations.
The federal government has been aware of the charges against Sarsour for 25 years and considered them at least four times when evaluating Sarsour’s eligibility for naturalization, Hanlon wrote. Despite this, the judge wrote that the government did not arrest Sarsour until this year.
DHS described Salah Sarsour as a “terrorist convicted of throwing Molotov cocktails” and claimed that allegations of discrimination by ICE agents were unfounded. (David Maung/Bloomberg)
TRUMP ADMINISTRATOR HAS ANNOUNCED THE ALLEGED ‘BIRTH TOURISM’ PROJECT AS EXPERTS SEND WARNING TO HOSPITALS
DHS and ICE Sarsour’s attorneys do not have the same First Amendment rights as U.S. citizens, but Hanlon rejected that argument, writing that people who enter the United States legally have the same rights guaranteed by the Constitution to all residents of the country.
The judge also said that Sarsour’s deep ties to society and his health problems were taken into account when deciding on his release. Sarsour has a wife, six children and nine grandchildren, all of whom are U.S. citizens.
CLICK TO DOWNLOAD FOX NEWS APPLICATION
“We will get our father back!” Salah’s son Kareem Sarsour said in his statement: “This experience was a nightmare, waking up every day with his health risked in a brutal basement cell just for speaking out on behalf of Palestine. But we know who my father is, he is the voice of the voiceless and the heart of our family and community. I can’t wait to hug him and hope that everyone like him is released.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
