PHILADELPHIA — Subramanyam Vedam, a 64-year-old man who spent four decades wrongfully imprisoned, may avoid deportation following recent legal decisions made by two separate courts. Currently housed in a short-term immigration detention center in Alexandria, Louisiana, Vedam is facing a possible deportation due to a decades-old drug charge. On Thursday, an immigration judge asserted a stay on his deportation until the Bureau of Immigration Appeals has the opportunity to review his case, which could take several months. Concurrently, a U.S. District Court in Pennsylvania also issued a stay, but the status of this case may be uncertain after the immigration court ruling. Vedam, who was legally brought to the U.S. from India as a child, had his murder conviction, stemming from a friend's death in 1980, overturned earlier this year. His immigration predicament stems from a no-contest plea related to LSD distribution when he was about 20 years old. His lawyers argue that his wrongful imprisonment, which included earning degrees and mentoring fellow inmates, should weigh heavily against the previous drug charges. Despite these legal victories, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security clarified that the overturned murder conviction does not negate Vedam's drug conviction, asserting that ICE will continue enforcing federal immigration laws. Relatives, while hopeful about the judicial outcomes, express deep concerns about the potential injustices Vedam may face, having lived in the U.S. since he was nine months old.