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After 80 days in federal custody

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Salah Sarsour

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a green card holder and

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president of the

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Islamic Society of Milwaukee

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was released from

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a facility in Indiana.

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Sarsour was arrested in a

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targeted operation on March 30

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when he was surrounded

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by ICE agents.

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I was an immigration judge

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in the Chicago Immigration Court

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for nine years

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and I handled, actually

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a detained docket.

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That's a docket of individuals

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who are in immigration custody

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so very similar to the situation

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that Mr. Sarsour was in.

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Mr. Sarsour's case is, in fact

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in the Chicago Immigration Court

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and I can tell you for one

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I have never seen anything

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like this at all.

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First of all

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that the primary charge

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against him is, as you noted

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that letter from

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Secretary of State Marco Rubio

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saying that Mr. Sarsour's

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really, lawful activity

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in the United States

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poses a foreign policy risk

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to the United States

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now that that is highly unusual

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and highly legally dubious.

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But the other thing

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that is extraordinary about

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this case is

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although the case is assigned

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to the Chicago Immigration Court

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the judge that was assigned

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to hear the case is not a

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Chicago Immigration Court judge.

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It's actually a very

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senior-level management judge

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in the Executive Office

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for Immigration Review.

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It's an

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acting regional deputy chief

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immigration judge.

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It's essentially the

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second-in-command of all

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the judges in the

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entire immigration court system.

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So that case was plucked out of

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other immigration court judges

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and specifically assigned to

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this one management judge.

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I've never seen that happen.