A hearing to determine whether a University of Minnesota international student should be released from U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention was postponed Tuesday so attorneys can prepare more evidence in the case.
Doğukan Günaydın, who was arrested near his St. Paul home on March 27, made his first court appearance in his immigration case around 10 a.m. Tuesday. He appeared via a live video broadcast from the Sherburne County jail, where he is being held and will remain in detention pending a future court hearing.
His lawyer, Hannah Brown, spent the first ten minutes arguing that her client’s bond hearing and removal proceedings should be closed to the public because his personal details had circulated online and reporters had shown up at his apartment building.
“My client has inadvertently been put in the public eye,” Brown told Immigration Court Judge Sarah Mazzie.
Mazzie denied Brown’s request, saying that the “genie is already out of the bottle.”
Mazzie said she received a last-minute charging document from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) arguing that Günaydın should remain in detention because of his 2024 drunk driving conviction; the filing cited a provision in the Immigration and Nationality Act to support the request.
Brown argued against the government’s stance, saying that its filing cited a provision that was usually reserved for terrorists and meant to protect national security. She requested that the court hold a “Joseph hearing” at a later date so she could have more time to review the new charging document in Günaydın’s case and gather additional testimony from witnesses. An attorney representing DHS did not oppose Brown’s request.
Mazzie granted the Joseph hearing, which will determine whether Günaydın should remain in detention or be released while his immigration case proceeds through the court.
The Joseph hearing is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Friday.
Günaydın only spoke a few times during the hearing, stating his full name to the judge and acknowledging that he would be expected to provide testimony at Friday’s hearing.
Mazzie also decided to postpone the date of Günaydın’s hearing on removal proceedings to April 15 so she could hear the evidence at the Joseph hearing first. At the April 15 hearing, Mazzie will review allegations made by DHS about Günaydın’s legal status, evaluate if the allegations are true and then decide whether he should be deported
About 60 people gathered outside immigration court before Günaydın’s hearing began, including members of the Interfaith Coalition of Immigration and parishioners from the Basilica of Saint Mary in Minneapolis. Günaydın was one of 19 people scheduled for hearings starting at 8:30 a.m.
Lawsuit requests release from jail
Günaydın filed a lawsuit on March 30 in federal court alleging that his legal student status was unlawfully terminated and that his constitutional rights were violated. His lawsuit names several federal officials as defendants, including President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
The lawsuit is being heard in federal court separately from the immigration court proceedings.
Günaydın, a STEM MBA student at the U’s Carlson School of Management, is asking a judge to grant his release from custody and to reinstate his student status. Brown is also representing Günaydın in the lawsuit.
In a recent court filing responding to Günaydın’s lawsuit, the United States Attorney’s Office said ICE officers informed Günaydın at the time of his arrest that his visa was revoked because of his drunk driving conviction. The government also argued that the federal court has no authority to review or take action on ICE’s decision on deportation proceedings.
Brown said in a court filing Monday that revoking Günaydın’s visa is not a basis for terminating his legal student status. A student visa allows an international student to enter the United States, but once they arrive, their student status, rather than their visa, determines whether they can stay lawfully.
Brown acknowledged that Günaydın pleaded guilty in 2024 to drunk driving, but said that is not a reason to cancel his legal student status.
Whatever the outcome of the federal lawsuit, University of St. Thomas Law Professor Virgil Wiebe said he expects to see immediate appeals from whichever side loses.
“It’s very clear that the new [presidential] administration is intent on making a statement and making an example and instilling fear and uncertainty into the situation,” he said.
