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Detroit Free Press: Lawyer for U-M protester detained at airport after spring break trip with family
Detroit Free Press - (archived: https://archive.ph/iJFZ5 ) Lawyer for U-M protester detained at airport after spring break trip with family
Tresa Baldas
Detroit Free Press
Published 7:28 p.m. ET April 7, 2025
A lawyer's spring break trip to the Dominican Republic with his family ended on a troubling note at Detroit Metro Airport on Sunday: He was detained by federal agents, questioned about his clients, and asked to give up his cellphone, he says.
But Dearborn attorney Amir Makled, who is representing a pro-Palestinian demonstrator who was arrested at the University of Michigan last year, stood his ground. He didn't give up his phone.
"I'm an American citizen. I'm not worried about being deported," Makled said he recalled thinking to himself in the airport interrogation room. "So, I tell them, 'I know you can take my phone. I'm not going to give you my phone, however ... 90% of my work is on my phone. You're not getting unfettered access to (it).' "
What followed was a 90-minute, back-and-forth verbal tussle between Makled and two federal agents, who, he said, ultimately released him without taking his phone, but looked at his contacts list instead. For the 38-year-old civil rights and criminal defense attorney, it was a daunting experience that he says highlights a troubling phenomenon that's occurring across the United States: Lawyers are getting targeted for handling issues the administration of President Donald Trump disagrees with.
Makled's airport experience comes in the wake of a memo that President Donald Trump issued to the U.S. Justice Department last month, in which he directed the agency to seek sanctions against attorneys, alleging they are helping fuel "rampant fraud and meritless claims" in the immigration system.
/snip
Tresa Baldas
Detroit Free Press
Published 7:28 p.m. ET April 7, 2025
Key Points
• Dearborn attorney Amir Makled was detained and questioned at Detroit Metro Airport about his clients and asked to surrender his cellphone.
• Customs and Border Protection (CBP) stated that electronic device searches are infrequent and unrelated to political beliefs, focusing on national security threats.
• Makled said he believes he was targeted due to his involvement in cases that challenge the current administration of President Donald Trump.
A lawyer's spring break trip to the Dominican Republic with his family ended on a troubling note at Detroit Metro Airport on Sunday: He was detained by federal agents, questioned about his clients, and asked to give up his cellphone, he says.
But Dearborn attorney Amir Makled, who is representing a pro-Palestinian demonstrator who was arrested at the University of Michigan last year, stood his ground. He didn't give up his phone.
"I'm an American citizen. I'm not worried about being deported," Makled said he recalled thinking to himself in the airport interrogation room. "So, I tell them, 'I know you can take my phone. I'm not going to give you my phone, however ... 90% of my work is on my phone. You're not getting unfettered access to (it).' "
What followed was a 90-minute, back-and-forth verbal tussle between Makled and two federal agents, who, he said, ultimately released him without taking his phone, but looked at his contacts list instead. For the 38-year-old civil rights and criminal defense attorney, it was a daunting experience that he says highlights a troubling phenomenon that's occurring across the United States: Lawyers are getting targeted for handling issues the administration of President Donald Trump disagrees with.
Makled's airport experience comes in the wake of a memo that President Donald Trump issued to the U.S. Justice Department last month, in which he directed the agency to seek sanctions against attorneys, alleging they are helping fuel "rampant fraud and meritless claims" in the immigration system.
/snip
2 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
Pls xpost to GD!
