The three-judge panel in the ninth-circuit court allowed the administration’s efforts to end the Temporary Protected Status of certain immigrants. This brings around 300000 immigrants living in the US under the radar to be deported. The ruling was 2:1, with the majority ruling that the U.S Department of Homeland Security’s decision is not reviewable.
Background
The case was first brought before the District Court for Northern District of California in 2018. The plaintiffs had sought an injunction on the termination order by the Trump Administration. The court granted this injunction and stopped the process of termination. It was then submitted for an appeal to the Federal Appeals Court.
The present case has decided the fate of four countries whose immigrants have been protected by the Temporary Protected Status for over two decades. Immigrants from El Salvador, Nicaragua, Sudan and Haiti will not be given this protection anymore.
Temporary Protected Status
The Temporary Protected Status was devised in the 1990s. It was done to protect vulnerable persons from being deported. This protection was given to immigrants from countries which are struck by natural disasters, armed conflict or immigrants who are unsafe in their home country. Recent developments in the Trump administration have allowed the Salvadoran immigrants protection of an extra year while the other countries do not receive any such immunity.
Court’s Opinion
The dissent given by Circuit Judge Morgan Christen stated that the TPS termination is reviewable and violated the federal administrative law. The other important observation is the impact of the termination; she stated that this termination will cause monumental consequences to thousands of people. The majority held that there has not been shown the likeliness of the equal protection clause being violated and thus the administration can go ahead with ending the TPS program for these countries.
Court’s Decision
The 2:1 decision by the court allowed the Trump Administration to continue the process and efforts to end the Temporary Protected Status for the immigrants from El Salvador, Nicaragua, Sudan and Haiti.
Implication of the Decision
This decision places thousands of immigrants under the direct threat of deportation to their home countries. Many young American children of these immigrants will be faced with a horrific choice of being displaced to a new country or being separated from their family. The temporary Protected Status has forever been debated by the two political parties in the United States.
Recently, presidential candidate, Joe Biden vowed to shield the holders of TPS and provide further protection for Venezuelans. The decision will pave the way for the administration to decide on the immigrants from other countries of Nepal and Honduras. The plaintiffs are to file an ‘en banc’ vote by 11 judges where the case would be reconsidered.
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