Current Events > Students who enrolled in fake university created by ICE can sue US, court rules

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https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/oakland/2024/07/03/court-students-at-fake-michigan-university-set-up-by-ice-can-sue/74228675007/

Students who enrolled at a fake university set up by federal immigration agents have the right to sue the U.S. government, a federal court has ruled.

A decision last week by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit means that the hundreds of students who paid tuition at the University of Farmington in Farmington Hills created by undercover agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement have a legal basis to continue pursuing their claims in court.

In 2020, a lawsuit was filed against the U.S. government in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims by attorneys on behalf of Teja Ravi and other students enrolled at the University of Farmington, which no longer exists after ICE shut it down in 2019 and arrested at least 250 of its students. The suit said the U.S. breached their contract with the students by essentially stealing their tuition money, about $11,000 a year for each student. They are asking for their money back and other punitive damages. But the legal claim was dismissed on technical grounds in 2022 by the Claims Court, which said the case lacked jurisdiction. Three judges with the appeals court overturned that decision on June 25 and remanded the case back to the Claims Court.

"This decision is not just a legal win, but a moral one," Prudhivi Raj, a student at the university, said Friday in a statement. "It underscores that no one, not even the government, is above the fundamental principles of fairness and honesty. ... We are grateful for this outcome and remain steadfast in our commitment to justice."

The Department of Homeland Security, of which ICE is a part, did not return an email this week from the Free Press seeking comment on the court's ruling. ICE has previously said it was trying to combat visa fraud. Attorneys with the Department of Justice are representing it in the case.

ICE started its undercover operation in 2015, creating a fake office on Northwestern Highway near 13 Mile with a website and an admissions process like a regular university. The University of Farmington was even listed on the website of ICE as a school approved by the U.S. government for students. It seemed real to its 600-plus students, a majority of them immigrants from India interested in studying technology and science. Many students are able to live and work legally in the U.S. through university programs such as the one the University of Farmington touted. The students had arrived legally in the U.S. and were on F-1 student visa programs when they enrolled. But it was all an elaborate operation by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations to trick foreign-born students they allege were trying to "pay to stay" in the U.S., a claim the students deny. ICE arrested hundreds of students, deported many of them and others left the U.S. on their own.

"The U.S. government (is) refusing to take accountability for the parents separated from their children over this, the couples separated over this, and the financial burden on families," said attorney Anna Nathanson, who represents the students and argued the case in court. "The need for justice is urgent.

Until it gets appealed to the SCROTUS, and they'll say "fuck you, you have no ground to sue".

I'm unsure how the Supreme Court will act here, on one hand they're pieces of shit, on the other they hate the US government more than most things.

ClayGuida posted...

I'm unsure how the Supreme Court will act here, on one hand they're pieces of shit, on the other they hate the US government more than most things.

They don't hate the government, they hate minorities and poor people. They're happy to empower cities who want to round up the homeless, border patrol agents who want to use violence against migrants, and legislators who want to do the bidding of the wealthy.

ICE is basically a racist gang with the authority and powers of the US Government, one of the few federal agencies that legitimately should be shut down.

Antifar posted...

They don't hate the government, they hate minorities and poor people. They're happy to empower cities who want to round up the homeless, border patrol agents who want to use violence against migrants, and legislators who want to do the bidding of the wealthy.

No, they absolutely hate the government. That's why they're on path to destroy every government institution. SEC, FEC, FDA, EPA, OSHA, you name it, they want it gone.

ClayGuida posted...

No, they absolutely hate the government. That's why they're on path to destroy every government institution. SEC, FEC, FDA, EPA, OSHA, you name it, they want it gone.

Then why are they trying to make Trump dictator

Rexdragon125 posted...

Then why are they trying to make Trump dictator

Because that's small government mindset.

ClayGuida posted...

No, they absolutely hate the government. That's why they're on path to destroy every government institution. SEC, FEC, FDA, EPA, OSHA, you name it, they want it gone.

They're not trying to destroy the military or the cops. Just the parts of the state that exist to balance the hierarchy of power rather than uphold it.

"Limited government" is branding for these guys, it's not an actual analysis of their views and actions.

ClayGuida posted...

No, they absolutely hate the government. That's why they're on path to destroy every government institution. SEC, FEC, FDA, EPA, OSHA, you name it, they want it gone.

Every institution, except those that serve the same white supremacist, Christofascist, hyper-capitalist agenda that the SCROTUS and Donald Trump are championing. ICE will no doubt be left alone, as will local and state law enforcement, the prison system, etc., beyond being given effectively unlimited power to enforce said agenda.

Antifar posted...

They're not trying to destroy the military or the cops. Just the parts of the state that exist to balance the hierarchy of power rather than uphold it.

"Limited government" is branding for these guys, it's not an actual analysis of their views and actions.

Small government means, Trump decrees it, it is now law. No bureaucracy needed.

It's also why they want to remove any opposition.

Why would we even want to kick out people who come here to study? Like that literally makes the US weaker and other countries stronger.

uwnim posted...

Why would we even want to kick out people who come here to study? Like that literally makes the US weaker and other countries stronger.

Fascists aren't very smart. Plus they're being played by Russia who's destabilizing all western countries.

Plus, the cruelty is always the point. If you don't understand this, you have a brain with a functioning empathy center. They get off on stepping on throats.

Can anyone TL;DR me on how this isn't textbook entrapment?

Serious_Cat posted...

Can anyone TL;DR me on how this isn't textbook entrapment?

Yeah it's pretty much entrapment.

I would be like if you cop dressed up like a car salesman and offered to sell you a new car, you pay for the car and then they arrest you bribing an officer so you can steal the car.