This story was updated on Monday, May 6th at 3:35 p.m.
The 45 student demonstrators arrested at The New School’s Gaza Solidarity Encampment and released from One Police Plaza last Friday have been charged with criminal trespassing in the third degree, according to a list provided to the New School Free Press by the New York Police Department (NYPD). At the time of publication, 37 New School students have also been issued interim suspensions.
For international students, while interim suspensions will not immediately impact their visa status, criminal charges and the outcome of student conduct investigations, if pursued by the university, could pose a threat to their student visas.
Breaking Down the Charges
The New School students who were arrested Friday morning were released after spending up to 9 hours in holding cells, each with a Desk Appearance Ticket (DAT). A DAT is a written order to appear in court at a later date for an arraignment, which is an official court proceeding where criminal charges are read to the defendant in front of a judge for the first time.
All 45 detained students were charged with criminal trespassing in the third degree of an enclosed property, and 41 with an additional charge of criminal trespassing in the third degree of a school. The list detailed no evidence of resisting arrest.
When filed in the third degree, a criminal trespassing charge is categorized as a class B misdemeanor. It is punishable by up to three months in jail and / or a fine of $500. If no jail time is ordered, the conviction may entail one year of probation.
Suspensions
Following the issuance of temporary suspensions on Friday, university spokesperson Amy Malsin told the New School Free Press that “an interim suspension is a temporary measure put in place, pending the outcome of an investigation and/or the full student conduct process.” There is no set time frame during which the university plans to complete investigations for all students placed on interim suspension.
Pages 14 through 19 of The New School’s Student Conduct Code outline the school’s policies on interim measures, disciplinary processes and procedures, sanctions, and the appeal process.
Section III. of the Code also states that “The interim measure may be lifted earlier by action of the Vice President of Student Success, or designee, however, other sanctions can/will remain.” Currently, Rob Mack is the vice president for student success and engagement at TNS and thus could potentially take action to lift the interim suspensions against the 37 students.
Nevertheless, the document also states that the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards will “work to adjudicate cases where interim measures have been issued in an expeditated and prompt manner.”
Impact on International Students
In a recent article, McEntee Law Group explains that “being arrested, charged, or convicted while participating in a protest could impact your current/future immigration status or visa applications, and your interactions with immigration and consular authorities. You will also have to disclose this on any future applications.”
An arrest can warrant various ramifications for international students including the inability to leave the U.S. until the case has reached its conclusion and prohibition from returning to the U.S.
Generally, international students hold a non-immigrant student visa for the duration of their studies. At The New School, non-immigrant student visas fall under one of two categories: F-1 Visas for full-time students, and J-1 Visas which are issued to study abroad and exchange students.
Students under either visa category are expected to adhere to Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) guidelines to maintain their visa status, as ordered by the Department of Homeland Security.
The Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) is one of the programs under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that administers the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS). Essentially, SEVP is the regulating entity while SEVIS is the system used to gather, store, and retrieve information.
SEVP provides approval and oversight to schools authorized to enroll students under non-immigrant visas, and gives students guidance on the requirements of maintaining their visa once they have been approved.
The system tracks and monitors non-immigrant visa holders and identifies any status violations so that action can be enforced. The university is required to report any activity that may affect a student’s visa status to SEVIS.
At The New School, “Violating your F-1 status will result in the termination of your SEVIS record and the loss of F-1 student status and F-1 benefits, such as off-campus work authorization.”
There are a number of violations that can result in the termination of a student’s SEVIS record, one of which is suspension that leads to an inability to maintain a full course of study. Depending on the duration of the interim suspensions, the university will also need to report students’ absence from classes to SEVIS, which could result in a termination of visas.
According to Nolo, an online library of legal resources, “Your ability to remain in the U.S. on a student visa depends on your not only going to school and studying as expected but obeying the broader rules that apply to any visa holder in the U.S., including that you [do] not commit any of various types of crimes.”
Reinstatement
In order to regain their F-1 status, a student must do so by either traveling and reentering the U.S., which is an infeasible option for those students awaiting their court date, or applying for reinstatement.
Eligibility to reinstate a SEVIS record relies on several circumstances, a few being if the violation of status was beyond their control if they are pursuing or will pursue a full course of study, and if they have not had repeated violations of status and are not in removal proceedings.
Regardless, it takes the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services about a year to approve or reject a reinstatement application. During the interim period, the student is disqualified from any F-1 status benefits, one of which is on-or off-campus employment. If the application is rejected, the student is subject to unlawful presence and must leave the country immediately.
As of the morning of May 6, the New School Free Press is still awaiting an official response from the university on the administration’s plan to handle the suspension of international students.
However, an email sent this morning from the Executive Deans of TNS stated that “We understand that the university will not pursue criminal charges against students arrested on May 2,” and that they would “further call attention to international students who were arrested,” and urge that “the university take no steps that might jeopardize their ability to remain in the U.S.”
This story was updated to reflect further information provided by the university after publication regarding the fact that interim suspensions will not impact student visas, however the outcome of student conduct investigations can.
In the May 6th “Dean’s Statement” sent to the University community, they state an understanding “that the university will not pursue criminal charges against students arrested on May 2.” Putting aside the date typo (it must be, right – there were no arrests on May 2), does this contradict the information NSFP was given, or can we (perhaps more realistically) assume that the Deans were talking out of their uninformed asses?