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| Ravi Ragbir |
IN A MOVING ruling, a federal judge in Manhattan federal court has ordered the immediate release of immigrant rights leader Ravi Ragbir from detention in New York, calling it “unnecessarily cruel.”
The decision by U.S. District Judge Katherine B. Forrest did not stop Ragbir's deportation, but it did grant him "the right to say goodby."
Ragbir is the executive director of the New Sanctuary Coalition of New York City. He’s been held since he was detained last month following a check-in with ICE.
In her ruling, Judge Forrest wrote: “There is, and ought to be in this country, the freedom to say goodbye. That is, freedom to hug one’s spouse and children, the freedom to organize the myriad of human affairs that collect over time. It ought not to be–and it has never before been–that those who have lived without incident in this country for years are subjected to treatment we associated with regimes we revile as unjust, regimes where those who have long lived in a country may be taken away without notice from streets, home, and work. And sent away. We are not that country; and woe be the day that we become that country under a fiction that laws allow it. We have a law higher than any that may be so interpreted-and that is our Constitution.”
Read the complete order in which Judge Katherine B. Forrest orders Ragbir’s release.
In her ruling, Judge Forrest wrote: “There is, and ought to be in this country, the freedom to say goodbye. That is, freedom to hug one’s spouse and children, the freedom to organize the myriad of human affairs that collect over time. It ought not to be–and it has never before been–that those who have lived without incident in this country for years are subjected to treatment we associated with regimes we revile as unjust, regimes where those who have long lived in a country may be taken away without notice from streets, home, and work. And sent away. We are not that country; and woe be the day that we become that country under a fiction that laws allow it. We have a law higher than any that may be so interpreted-and that is our Constitution.”
RELATED: Outspoken immigration activist faces deportationShe concluded by writing: “Having carefully reviewed the submissions and entire record in this matter, and having heard the parties, the Court is convinced that it must grant the petition for habeas corpus. Constitutional principles of due process and the avoidance of unnecessary cruelty here allow and provide for an early departure. Petitioner is entitled to the freedom to say goodbye. Accordingly, it is hereby ordered that petitioner shall be immediately released from custody.”
Read the complete order in which Judge Katherine B. Forrest orders Ragbir’s release.
Ragbir immigrated to the U.S. from Trinidad in 1991, but lost his legal status when he was convicted of wire fraud nearly two decades ago. He’s been fighting deportation ever since, and even appealed for a pardon from President Obama.
He was detained during a regular check-in earlier this month and flown to Miami for the beginning of his deportation proceedings, his wife, the immigration lawyer Amy Gottlieb, wrote for The New York Times.
Forrest acknowledged that Ragbir’s efforts for staying his deportation were probably at an end. But. for her, the sudden removal crossed a line.
"But if due process means anything at all, it means that we must look at the totality of circumstances and determine whether we have dealt fairly when we are depriving a person of the most essential aspects of life, liberty, and family," Forrest wrote. "Here, any examination of these circumstances makes clear that the petitioner's personal interest, his interest in due process, required that we not pluck him out of his life without a moment's notice, remove him from his family and community without a moment's notice."
"Taking such a man, and there are many such men and women like him, and subjecting him to what is rightfully understood as no different or better than penal detention, is certainly cruel," she wrote. "We as a country need and must not act so. The Constitution commands better."
The judge acknowledged that ICE can deport Ragbir at any time. But there's no evidence that he needs to be locked up, or that he wouldn't leave on his own if ordered to, she said.
It's not certain Ragbir will be able to stay out of jail. An appellate court could put a hold on Forrest's order, meaning he could be detained while an appeal is argued.
But Ragbir's lawyers hope to prevent his deportation while they challenge his criminal conviction in court.
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He was detained during a regular check-in earlier this month and flown to Miami for the beginning of his deportation proceedings, his wife, the immigration lawyer Amy Gottlieb, wrote for The New York Times.
Forrest acknowledged that Ragbir’s efforts for staying his deportation were probably at an end. But. for her, the sudden removal crossed a line.
"But if due process means anything at all, it means that we must look at the totality of circumstances and determine whether we have dealt fairly when we are depriving a person of the most essential aspects of life, liberty, and family," Forrest wrote. "Here, any examination of these circumstances makes clear that the petitioner's personal interest, his interest in due process, required that we not pluck him out of his life without a moment's notice, remove him from his family and community without a moment's notice."
"Taking such a man, and there are many such men and women like him, and subjecting him to what is rightfully understood as no different or better than penal detention, is certainly cruel," she wrote. "We as a country need and must not act so. The Constitution commands better."
The judge acknowledged that ICE can deport Ragbir at any time. But there's no evidence that he needs to be locked up, or that he wouldn't leave on his own if ordered to, she said.
It's not certain Ragbir will be able to stay out of jail. An appellate court could put a hold on Forrest's order, meaning he could be detained while an appeal is argued.
But Ragbir's lawyers hope to prevent his deportation while they challenge his criminal conviction in court.
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