A federal judge in New Jersey on Tuesday declined to transfer Columbia University alum Mahmoud Khalil's immigration case to Louisiana, where he is currently being held.

Khalil was arrested by federal immigration authorities last month, over his alleged role in helping orchestrate a massive antisemitic protest on his campus last year. The Trump administration is also currently trying to revoke Khalil's green card over the protests.

The federal government asked U.S. District Judge Michael Farbiarz to transfer the case from New Jersey, where Khalil was arrested, to Louisiana where he is being held by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials. His attorneys want the case heard in New York, according to The Hill.

Farbiarz, who was appointed by former President Joe Biden, determined that he has jurisdiction over the case because Khalil was being detained in New Jersey when his lawyer filed the challenge.

“The case as filed can go forward only here. The other 93 districts, where the Petitioner was nowhere to be found, are out of the question,” Farbiarz wrote in his 67-page ruling. “This Court’s jurisdiction is not undone because the Petitioner is no longer in New Jersey."

So far, Khalil has not been charged with a crime but the government argues that he poses a national security threat.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.