Summary
Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish student at Tufts University, was detained in Somerville, MA, by masked agents claiming to be police, without charges or transparency.
The Trump administration alleges she supported Hamas, citing unverified intelligence, after her student visa was revoked.
Der Spiegel linked her detention to pro-Palestinian advocacy, including an opinion piece urging divestment from Israel.
The incident sparked outrage, highlighting long-standing surveillance and detainment of Muslim Americans under national security pretenses.
Civil liberties advocates warn of increasing government overreach targeting minority communities.
Massachusetts does not have a stand your ground law. It would be illegal for anyone else to step in with a firearm. She is also not able to acquire a firearm under Massachusetts law.
Not having a stand your ground law just means you have a duty to escape/remove yourself from the situation if it is safe to do so. It does not eliminate your right to self defense or extend it to defense of another. If someone is being kidnapped, they reasonably could not escape.
That being said, I doubt it would be ruled in favor of a defendant in this case.
She was also unable to acquire a firearm, and the police did technically identify themselves as police. Very shady overall.
Verbally and with noting to help back up that claim.
It’s also illegal for people in plain clothes to abduct women off the street.