Soliman Lawyers Petition for Immediate Release after Gross Violations in Butler Jail
Denial of Religious and Personal Liberty, Access to Counsel Warrants Urgent Action from Federal Court
Read the Emergency Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus.
CINCINNATI - Today attorney Robert A. Ratliff, with Brennan, Manna & Diamond, LLC, in collaboration with the attorneys Kathryn Brady and Franchel Daniel at the Muslim Legal Fund of America, filed an emergency petition for writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241 and a request for temporary restraining order (Case No. 25-cv-556) in federal court.
The writ demands the immediate release of Ayman Soliman from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody at the Butler County Jail for several reasons. In addition to being unlawfully detained due to the U.S. government’s illegal termination of his asylum status and denial of a bond hearing, Soliman was recently improperly placed into solitary confinement and subjected to anti-Muslim persecution by a corrections officer in the Butler County Jail — a man who is known for bias and violence against immigrants. Soliman was also repeatedly denied access to counsel by jail officials, another violation of his constitutional rights. The habeas petition also seeks to enjoin DHS from further ICE detention while his case is pending in immigration court.
“The Butler County Sheriff, under the color of DHS authority to detain people in removal proceedings, unlawfully uses solitary confinement to prevent attorneys’ access to their clients, which limits their ability to vigorously fight against the government’s deportation machine,” said MLFA attorney Kathryn Brady.
Nazly Mamedova, one of Soliman’s attorneys, added, “Ayman has not slept for more than 3 hours a day since he was locked up in solitary confinement. While he tried to keep a clear mind, he really struggled with being confined in a small space for 23 hours a day. Anyone would. The fact is, Ayman should be home doing the job that he loves and is good at, caring for others, not locked up in any jail cell.”
In July, Ayman Soliman’s attorneys filed a lawsuit challenging the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services’ (USCIS) unlawful termination of his asylum status in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Western Division. Last week, U.S. District Judge Jeffrey P. Hopkins issued a 14-day Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) and advised the parties that he could consider continuing the relief once a habeas petition is filed. Today’s filing is the next step in this case.
Learn more about Soliman’s legal case in these readouts of the first and second hearings in Immigration Judge Riedthaler Williams' court, and announcement about the federal lawsuit.
Read about the broad and deep community support for Ayman Soliman, known as the Interfaith Imam, here.
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