A federal District Court in Washington (David G. Estudillo) has granted a temporary restraining order to force the Department of Homeland Security to restore the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System status of a Chinese national who lawfully entered the United States. The Court also issued an order to prevent removal proceedings.
The student had been flagged in a criminal records check because he had been arrested, but not convicted, of a charge of driving under the influence. Under the student visa rules, conviction for a crime of violence for which a sentence of more than one year imprisonment may be imposed constitutes a failure to maintain satisfactory status and is the basis for revoking the visa. The DUI charge involved a maximum penalty of less than a year.
The Court found that termination of his student visa record was a final agency action subject to judicial review under the Administrative Procedures Act, that the student showed substantial likelihood of success on the merits of the claims that termination violated DHS regulations and that the termination was arbitrary and capricious, that the student would suffer irreparable harm in the absence of a TRO, and that the balance of equities and public interest tipped “sharply”
in favor of the student. (Doe v. Noem, W.D. WA, No.2:25-cv-00633, 4/17/25.)
You Need to Know …. Shortly after this and other adverse decisions, the Trump Administration reversed course, reinstated students whose listing on the list of students had been terminated and terminated its general program of terminating registrations of international students. The Association of American Universities said an estimated 1400 registrations had been cancelled, making students unable to attend classes. The government said in a case announcing the change in plans that it reserved the right to terminate visas in other situations.
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