The Stanford Daily has won its lawsuit against the Trump administration.

On Friday, U.S. District Judge Noël Wise ruled that statutes which Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the federal government used to deport legal immigrants on the basis of their speech were unconstitutional. The court ruled in favor of The Daily on six of its eight claims.

The lawsuit, filed on Aug. 6, 2025, came after several university students — such as Mahmoud Khalil at Columbia University and Rümeysa Öztürk at Tufts University — were targeted for their pro-Palestinian speech. It alleged that these immigration actions violated the 1st Amendment and created a chilling effect on campuses including Stanford, limiting international students’ participation in The Daily.

“Stated plainly, in the United States, freedom of speech belongs to the people. It is not the government’s to take,” wrote United States District Court Judge Noël Wise in her ruling, a 90-page opinion that repeatedly invoked founding figures including Benjamin Franklin and James Madison.

Wise described the government’s use of the statutes as “a viewpoint- and content-based restriction as applied to protected speech.” Rubio’s visa revocations and deportations, she wrote, targeted noncitizens whose speech he “personally determined” to be unacceptable.

The Daily was one of three plaintiffs in the lawsuit, alongside two anonymous students not affiliated with Stanford, though one later departed the case. The plaintiffs were represented pro bono by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE).

The Daily’s editor-in-chief, George Porteous ’27, described the ruling as a victory for the Constitution and student newsrooms across the country.

“The reporters in our newsroom shouldn’t have to fear that writing a story will result in their deportation. Today’s victory means they won’t have to,” wrote Porteous. “The Court’s decision will enable our reporters to focus on what they do best: asking tough questions and reporting the truth.”

FIRE said the outcome was a triumph for free speech protections. “In America, free speech doesn’t just belong to the people who say things the government agrees with,” FIRE attorney Conor Fitzpatrick said in a press release. “Today’s ruling proves that free speech isn’t a privilege, but the inalienable right of every man, woman, and child.”

The Daily has reached out to attorneys representing the defendants for comment.

In her ruling, Wise noted that “The government’s actions have specifically impacted Stanford Daily by affecting the quality of pieces The Stanford Daily is able to publish.” She referenced a Daily editorial that described students at Stanford who were concerned about contributing and speaking to The Daily for fear of retaliation by the federal government.

“Free speech, including the freedom to criticize the government and its leaders, is not a sign of our democracy’s fragility. It is evidence of its strength,” Wise added. “Zealous protection of our Constitutional right to free speech is a provocative demonstration of our country’s powerful lack of fear.”

Wise denied two of The Daily’s claims seeking injunctive relief — which would have barred the government from revoking visas or initiating deportations based on protected speech — deeming such relief “not appropriate at this stage.”

The Trump administration is likely to appeal Judge Wise’s decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.