Four international students at the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley (UT-RGV) are taking legal action against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), accusing the agency of unlawfully terminating their legal immigration status based on minor, resolved criminal cases. The students argue that the government’s actions are intended to force them to leave the country voluntarily.
The students involved in the lawsuit are Hugo Adrian Villar Castellanos, a doctoral physics student from Mexico; Shishir Timilsena, a doctoral physics student from Nepal; Amir Gholami, a doctoral finance student from Iran; and Julio Dylan Sanchez Wong, an undergraduate computer science student from Mexico.
These students are among more than 1,000 individuals nationwide whose legal statuses were marked as terminated in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in recent weeks. Immigration attorneys have expressed concerns that being flagged in SEVIS can have more immediate consequences than a visa revocation. Unlike visa revocation, which primarily affects a student’s ability to reenter the U.S., SEVIS removals can immediately impact students’ eligibility for employment and are notoriously difficult to appeal.
Marlene Dougherty, the attorney representing the students, highlighted in the lawsuit that if ICE determines a student is deportable due to a criminal record or a revoked visa, it has the authority to initiate removal proceedings and argue the case in immigration court. However, she argues that ICE cannot misuse SEVIS to bypass due process and expel students without appropriate legal procedures.
Dougherty filed the lawsuit in federal court on Tuesday, but neither she nor the Department of Homeland Security had responded to requests for comment by Wednesday.
According to the lawsuit, UT-RGV officials notified the four students between April 7-10 that their legal status had been marked as terminated in SEVIS. Following this change, the university terminated their employment. All four students had worked in various capacities at the university.
The students’ criminal history includes relatively minor offenses, all of which had been resolved prior to their SEVIS status changes. Castellanos received a Class C misdemeanor ticket for public intoxication in 2020 and pled guilty to failing to yield the right of way when turning left, paying a fine in 2024. Timilsena faced a Class A misdemeanor charge for allegedly causing bodily injury to his wife in 2024, but the case was dismissed at the prosecution’s request. Gholami was charged with interfering with emergency communications in October 2024, but the case remains unresolved. Wong was convicted of driving while intoxicated, but his conviction was dismissed after he completed a pre-trial diversion program.
Dougherty argues that none of these offenses or their outcomes justify the removal of the students’ legal status in SEVIS. She is accusing DHS of violating the Administrative Procedure Act by terminating the students’ statuses arbitrarily. Dougherty is now asking a judge to order DHS to restore their legal status.
“These plaintiffs are valued members of their university, which wants them to continue their education,” Dougherty wrote. “However, their ability to remain enrolled is now at risk.”
This case follows similar lawsuits filed by international students in Michigan and Georgia who were also removed from the SEVIS database. In one case, a federal government official admitted that the DHS does not have the authority to terminate students’ immigration status, as that responsibility lies with the Department of State. The official also confirmed that a removal from SEVIS does not necessarily equate to the termination of a student’s visa.
As the legal battle unfolds, the students from UT-RGV are seeking to restore their statuses and continue their studies without further disruption.
Related topics:
- MIT Community Reels After U.S. Revokes Visas of Nine Students, Researchers
- Quebec Calls for Federal Immigration Cuts, Sparking Concern Among Businesses
- Hong Kong Defends Immigration Policy After UK MP Denied Entry
