“The visa revocations violated due process and federal procedural law,” the students argue in their lawsuit.
A federal judge has temporarily blocked the U.S. Department of Homeland Security from terminating student visas for five international students including a Nigerian attending Missouri universities. U.S. District Judge Stephen Bough granted a temporary restraining order Thursday following a Kansas City hearing.
The students are suing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, the department, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
In their lawsuit, the students argue that the visa revocations violated due process and federal procedural law. They claim federal officials unlawfully removed their F-1 student visa status without notice or hearings, putting them at risk of deportation and interrupting their studies or educational employment.
The plaintiffs, who are from Nigeria, Spain, Nepal, and Bangladesh, are enrolled at Truman State University, Northwest Missouri State, Southeast Missouri State, and Missouri University of Science and Technology. One plaintiff is employed in Kansas City as part of a post-graduate program.
Judge Bough ordered the restoration of the students’ status in the SEVIS tracking system. A hearing is scheduled for May 7 to determine whether to extend the order.
The students believe that prior nonviolent incidents might have triggered DHS to revoke their records in a government database that tracks international students.
An international student in Missouri from Nigeria, for example, had once paid a $50 fine for playing music too loudly.
Another student, also from Nigeria, had once been cited for improperly passing a streetcar and paid a $80.50 fine.
And yet another, from Bangladesh, had been charged with public intoxication but believed that the issue was resolved years ago after he completed six months of probation and 75 hours of community service.