Two courts in the United States have ordered immigration authorities not to deport 64-year-old Subramanyam Vedam, an Indian-origin man who spent more than four decades in prison before his murder conviction was overturned earlier this year.

Vedam moved to the US with his parents when he was nine months old and grew up in State College, Pennsylvania, where his father worked at Penn State University.

On Thursday, an immigration judge paused his deportation until the Board of Immigration Appeals decides whether it will review his case,  a process that may take several months.

His lawyers also secured a stay from the US District Court the same day, though that may remain paused for now because of the immigration court ruling.

Vedam, whom family members call “Subu,” has been a legal permanent resident of the US. His lawyers say he had already submitted his citizenship application before he was arrested in 1982 for the murder of his friend Thomas Kinser.

He was convicted twice, even though there were no eyewitnesses and no clear motive.
In August, a court overturned the conviction after new ballistics evidence was found, evidence that lawyers say prosecutors did not reveal earlier.

Vedam was expected to be released from prison on October 3, but immigration officials took him into custody immediately. He is currently being held at a short-term detention center in Alexandria, Louisiana, which has facilities for quick deportations.

The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is seeking to deport Vedam based on a no-contest plea he entered about 40 years ago related to the delivery of LSD when he was around 20 years old.

His lawyers argue that the 43 years he spent in prison for a crime he was later cleared of should be considered more significant than the old drug case.

A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said that having the murder conviction overturned does not cancel the drug conviction.

"Having a single conviction vacated will not stop ICE's enforcement of the federal immigration law," said Tricia McLaughlin, Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs.

Vedam’s sister, Saraswathi Vedam, said the family is relieved that two courts have stopped the deportation for now.

She said, "We're also hopeful that the Board of Immigration Appeals will ultimately agree that Subu's deportation would represent another untenable injustice, inflicted on a man who not only endured 43 years in a maximum-security prison for a crime he didn't commit, but has also lived in the US since he was 9 months old."