Leon Wildes, a New York immigration lawyer who successfully fought the United States government’s attempt to deport John Lennon, died on Monday in Manhattan.
His death, at Lenox Hill Hospital, was confirmed by his son Michael.
For more than three years, from early 1972 to the fall of 1975, Mr. Wildes (pronounced WY-ulds) doggedly battled the targeting by the Nixon administration and immigration officials of Mr. Lennon, the former Beatle, and his wife, Yoko Ono, marshaling a series of legal arguments that exposed both political chicanery and a hidden U.S. immigration policy.
Uncovering secret records through the Freedom of Information Act, he showed that immigration officials, in practice, can exercise wide discretion in whom they choose to deport, a revelation that continues to resonate in immigration law.
And he revealed that Mr. Lennon, an antiwar activist and a vocal critic of President Richard M. Nixon, had been singled out by the White House for political reasons.
Persons:
Leon Wildes, John Lennon, Michael, Wildes, doggedly, Nixon, Lennon, Yoko Ono, marshaling, Richard M
Organizations:
Lenox Hill Hospital, White House
Locations:
New York, United States, Manhattan, Lenox