Courts halt deportation of Indian-origin man wrongfully jailed for 43yrs
What's the story
Two United States courts have intervened to stop the deportation of Subramanyam Vedam, a 64-year-old Indian-origin man who was wrongfully imprisoned for 43 years. Vedam was convicted in 1983 for the murder of his once-roommate Tom Kinser, a 19-year-old college student. His conviction was overturned in August after new ballistics evidence came to light. Despite the reversal of his murder conviction, Vedam was taken into custody by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on October 3.
Legal proceedings
Vedam's deportation stayed by immigration judge
The agency is now seeking his deportation over a minor drug offense from his youth. After he was found guilty of the murder, he was sentenced to two and a half to five years in prison in 1984 for a drug offense. That term was to be served concurrently with his life sentence. While he was exonerated for the murder charge, his drug conviction still stands, ICE said.
Judge
What is lawyer said
His lawyers, however, argue that his decades of unlawful imprisonment, during which he acquired college degrees and mentored fellow convicts, should outweigh a nonviolent crime from the 1970s. The 64-year-old, fondly called 'Subu' by his family, is being confined at a detention center in Louisiana that is equipped with an airfield for deportations, the Associated Press reported.
Family response
Family expresses relief over court's intervention
Last week, an immigration judge halted his deportation until the Bureau of Immigration Appeals determines whether to review his case, which may take months. A district court in Pennsylvania also halted his deportation. Vedam's family has expressed relief over the court's intervention. His sister, Saraswathi Vedam, said they were "deeply relieved" that two courts had intervened. She added that deporting her brother, who moved to the US when he was nine months old, would be "another untenable injustice."
Case background
Vedam was convicted in 1983 for murder
Vedam was arrested in 1982 for allegedly killing Kinser. Kinser's body was discovered nine months after going missing in a wooded area, with a bullet wound in his head. Vedam had requested Kinser for a ride the day he disappeared. The vehicle was returned to its usual spot, but no one saw it being returned. He was later charged with Kinser's murder, denied bail, had his passport and green card seized, and was labeled a "foreigner likely to flee."