Hunter
05/06/25
A federal judge has ordered the four University of Iowa students who filed suit against the Trump administration to either identify themselves or drop their case.
The Press-Citizen reports US District Court Judge Rebecca Goodgame Ebinger made the ruling at a Monday hearing, two weeks after the four students filed a lawsuit alleging that the Trump administration had acted “unlawfully” when it changed their Student and Exchange Visitor Information System or SEVIS records status from “active” to “terminated.”
The suit was filed by University of Iowa professor Kate Melloy Goettel, described on the UI website as a national leader in immigration law. The Department of Homeland Security, DHS secretary Kristi Noem, and acting Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement Todd Lyons were named as the parties in the suit. The suit claims the plaintiff’s student visas were cancelled without explanation.
The students, identified in the suit only as John Does #1-4, say they wish to remain anonymous because revealing their identities increases their chances of being arrested, detained or removed from the country. They also claimed that being publicly identified would discourage them from pursuing the case.
The judge extended the current restraining order preventing the government from deporting the students for an additional 14 days or until she rules on a preliminary injunction. She gave the students until 5pm today to identify themselves or drop their suit.