CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia (ACLU-WV) has filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of a Marshall University graduate student whose legal status was unlawfully revoked one month before he was set to graduate.
During a time when students are supposed to be focusing on final exams, celebrating their accomplishments and searching for work opportunities, S.V. received an email stating that his F-1 visa was being revoked, which threw his world into disarray. He later learned the action was being taken because he was “identified in a criminal records check.”
“Having been identified in a criminal record check is not a lawful ground for termination pursuant to federal regulations,” ACLU-WV Legal Director Aubrey Sparks said. “Our client was not convicted of a crime of violence, nor was he convicted of a crime for which the potential sentence is more than one year, meaning that he categorically is not subject to termination of his F-1 status on those grounds.”
While S.V. had a nonviolent misdemeanor prior to his current F-1 visa, the state has no authority to consider that in terminating his current visa, and even if the state did have that authority it would not be a lawful justification, Sparks explained.
In 2020, S.V., who is originally from India, was charged with a misdemeanor traffic violation of operating under the influence in Indiana for which he was sentenced to probation. His probation was terminated early as the result of his good behavior and compliance, based on the recommendation of his probation officer. He then left the United States and returned in 2023 to study at Marshall on a new student visa. He disclosed the previous charge when re-applying, satisfied all requirements, and was permitted to re-enter the country under the new visa. He was in the process of applying for post-graduate work in the United States when he received the email ending his status.
S.V. said the experience has caused chaos for his education and career plans.
“I desperately want to complete my graduate degree and pursue work in the United States,” he said. “It is clear this wasn't a decision based on my circumstance or experience - this was a predetermined outcome and they just said whatever needed to be said to justify it, even when it didn't apply to me.”
“International students and scholars are a vital part of our nation’s universities, our economy, and our communities,” ACLU-WV Executive Director Eli Baumwell said. “Unfortunately, it has become increasingly clear that the Trump administration is simply taking the law into its own hands in its crusade against noncitizens. Never before has a president taken such sweeping actions to revoke student visas, and that’s why we need the courts to step in and protect their rights to due process under the Constitution.”
“It is fundamentally unfair to deny someone like S.V. the ability to finish his degree,” Sparks said. “Like so many other promising international students, he has traveled far, studied hard, paid top-notch tuition into the United States economy, and immersed himself into a foreign culture, only to be denied the credentials he has worked so hard to achieve right at the finish line.”
The complaint is available below.