A Biden-appointed U.S. judge on Friday blocked President Donald Trump’s plan to rapidly deport migrants to third countries, requiring the administration to give individuals a “meaningful opportunity” to contest their removal before deportation.
U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy’s preliminary injunction prohibits immigration officials from deporting migrants to countries other than their own without giving them the chance to demonstrate fears of persecution or torture.
The Massachusetts-based judge’s decision represents another obstacle for the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement efforts since returning to office in January, although the Trump administration immediately indicated it plans to appeal Murphy’s decision.
In February, DHS had instructed immigration officers to review cases of migrants who had been granted protections against returning to their home countries, examining whether they could be detained and sent to alternative third countries instead.
The directive would have affected hundreds, if not thousands, of migrants currently in the United States, requiring officials to give them a “meaningful opportunity” to argue their case in U.S. court before deportation, per Reuters.
The ruling affects migrants who have been granted limited protections against returning to their home countries due to potential persecution or torture.
“The Court has found it likely that these deportations have or will be wrongfully executed and that there has at least been no opportunity for Plaintiffs to demonstrate the substantial harms they might face,” wrote Murphy in his decision, adding that the administration’s revised guidance still “fails to safeguard basic rights.”
“The protections the court has ordered here are critical to make sure DHS does not turn around and ship them to a third country where they would face the same harms,” said Human Rights First attorney Anwen Hughes, who represents the plaintiffs.
Trump’s immigration agenda has faced persistent judicial obstacles, with federal courts frequently issuing nationwide injunctions that halt policies aimed at securing the border, with the Supreme Court set to review this issue in mid-May.
Even after DHS issued revised guidance in March requiring diplomatic assurances that migrants would not face persecution in third countries, the judge found these protections inadequate.
“Even if such blanket assurances might, in some individual cases, satisfy due process, the March Guidance precludes any further review prior to removal,” Murphy wrote. “Without meaningful review, the rights Congress has provided are little more than dead letter.”
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[[{“value”:”
A Biden-appointed U.S. judge on Friday blocked President Donald Trump’s plan to rapidly deport migrants to third countries, requiring the administration to give individuals a “meaningful opportunity” to contest their removal before deportation.
U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy’s preliminary injunction prohibits immigration officials from deporting migrants to countries other than their own without giving them the chance to demonstrate fears of persecution or torture.
The Massachusetts-based judge’s decision represents another obstacle for the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement efforts since returning to office in January, although the Trump administration immediately indicated it plans to appeal Murphy’s decision.
In February, DHS had instructed immigration officers to review cases of migrants who had been granted protections against returning to their home countries, examining whether they could be detained and sent to alternative third countries instead.
The directive would have affected hundreds, if not thousands, of migrants currently in the United States, requiring officials to give them a “meaningful opportunity” to argue their case in U.S. court before deportation, per Reuters.
The ruling affects migrants who have been granted limited protections against returning to their home countries due to potential persecution or torture.
“The Court has found it likely that these deportations have or will be wrongfully executed and that there has at least been no opportunity for Plaintiffs to demonstrate the substantial harms they might face,” wrote Murphy in his decision, adding that the administration’s revised guidance still “fails to safeguard basic rights.”
“The protections the court has ordered here are critical to make sure DHS does not turn around and ship them to a third country where they would face the same harms,” said Human Rights First attorney Anwen Hughes, who represents the plaintiffs.
Trump’s immigration agenda has faced persistent judicial obstacles, with federal courts frequently issuing nationwide injunctions that halt policies aimed at securing the border, with the Supreme Court set to review this issue in mid-May.
Even after DHS issued revised guidance in March requiring diplomatic assurances that migrants would not face persecution in third countries, the judge found these protections inadequate.
“Even if such blanket assurances might, in some individual cases, satisfy due process, the March Guidance precludes any further review prior to removal,” Murphy wrote. “Without meaningful review, the rights Congress has provided are little more than dead letter.”
“}]]
