MEDIA CONTACT : Arthena Antonetti, Communications Director | Email
March 4, 2026
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SAFE PASSAGE PROJECT WINS FEDERAL COURT VICTORY RESTORING CLIENT’S LEGAL PROTECTIONS
After sustained legal advocacy, Safe Passage Project secures ruling ordering the immediate return of work authorization for a Safe Passage Project client, whose SIJS deferred action protections were revoked in violation of his due process rights
NEW YORK, NY — A federal judge has ordered the government to immediately restore the legal protections of a young immigrant who graduated college with honors and built a career in the U.S., after those protections were revoked in violation of his due process rights.
Judge Gary R. Brown of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York issued a Memorandum and Order yesterday granting provisional relief to a Safe Passage Project client who holds Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS), a Congressionally-enacted program providing a path to residency and citizenship for young people who have experienced abuse, neglect, or abandonment. Judge Brown found that the revocation of our client’s protections violated Constitutional safeguards, statutory guarantees, and regulatory law.
Safe Passage Project represented our client in obtaining his immigration protections and fought to restore his rights in federal court. He earned his status after both a New York state court and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) found that he merited SIJS relief and accompanying deferred action. The client first entered the U.S. as a 9-year-old child, and has since graduated from college with honors and began a career as a theatrical lighting designer. He lived and worked lawfully in the United States until he was unlawfully arrested by ICE in an incident that Court determined to be a “discriminatory act” of racial profiling, and had his deferred action and work authorization revoked before being subjected to an unauthorized fine.
Judge Brown’s order held the arrest of Safe Passage Project’s client and detention by ICE to have been illegal and in violation of his rights. Judge Brown vacated the revocation of his deferred action and work authorization, directed ICE to return his work authorization card immediately, and voided the fine as unauthorized after calling it “pretextual and retaliatory.”
“Our client deserved to have his rights upheld, and we are grateful to the Court for this ruling. But we cannot ignore what this case represents. There are far too many people in detention right now whose rights are being violated in the same way, and who do not have anyone fighting for them. Safe Passage Project remains committed to ensuring that every young person we serve has access to the legal representation they need,” said Tania Cohen, Legal Director at Safe Passage Project.
Safe Passage Project will continue to pursue all available relief in this matter.