Supreme Court allows Trump to restart swift deportation of migrants away from their home countries
Share and Follow


WASHINGTON (AP) A divided Supreme Court on Monday allowed the Trump administration to restart swift removals of migrants to countries other than their homelands, lifting for now a court order requiring they get a chance to challenge the deportations.

The high court majority did not detail its reasoning in the brief order, as is typical on its emergency docket. All three liberal justices dissented from the order.

It came after immigration officials put eight people on a plane to South Sudan in May. U.S. District Judge Brian E. Murphy in Boston found that violated his court order giving people a chance to argue they could be in danger of torture if sent away from their home countries.

The migrants from countries including Myanmar, Vietnam and Cuba had been convicted of serious crimes in the U.S. and immigration officials have said that they were unable to return them quickly to their home countries.

After Murphy stepped in, authorities landed the plane at a U.S. naval base in Djibouti, where the migrants were housed in a converted shipping container and the officers guarding them faced rough conditions even as immigration attorneys waited for word from their clients.

The case comes amid a sweeping immigration crackdown by Republican President Donald Trump’s administration, which has pledged to deport millions of people who are living in the United States illegally.

Since some countries do not accept U.S. deportations, the administration has reached agreements with other countries, including Panama and Costa Rica, to house them. South Sudan, meanwhile, has endured repeated waves of violence since gaining independence in 2011.

Murphy’s order doesn’t prohibit deportations to third countries. But it says migrants must have a real chance to argue they could be in serious danger of torture if sent to another country.

In a scathing 19-page dissent, Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote that the court’s action exposes “thousands to the risk of torture or death.”

“The government has made clear in word and deed that it feels itself unconstrained by law, free to deport anyone anywhere without notice or an opportunity to be heard,” she wrote in the dissent joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson.

The justices have confronted a similar issue in Trump’s effort to send Venezuelans accused of being gang members to a notorious prison in El Salvador with little chance to challenge the deportations in court.

In that case, the court said migrants must get a “reasonable time” to file a court challenge before being removed, and the majority blocked the administration from resuming the deportations while lower courts worked out exactly how long they should get.

The conservative-majority court has sided with Trump in other immigration cases, however, clearing the way for his administration to end temporary legal protections affecting a total of nearly a million immigrants.

The third-country deportation case has been one of several legal flashpoints as the administration rails against judges whose rulings have slowed the president’s policies.

Another order from Murphy, who was appointed by President Joe Biden, resulted in the Trump administration returning a gay Guatemalan man who had been wrongly deported to Mexico, where he says he had been raped and extorted. The man, identified in court papers as O.C.G, was the first person known to have been returned to U.S. custody after deportation since the start of Trump’s second term.

Share and Follow
You May Also Like
Trump: Kimmel ‘next’ after CBS axes Colbert's 'Late Show'

Trump Suggests Kimmel May Be ‘Next’ After CBS Cancels Colbert’s ‘Late Show’

(The Hill) President Trump took a swing at ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel on…
Judge orders Tennessee to turn off inmate's heart-regulating implanted device at execution

Tennessee Judge Commands Disabling of Inmate’s Heart Device During Execution

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee officials must deactivate a death-row inmate ‘s…

Woman Detained as Homicide Investigation Begins Following Baby’s Drowning in Chicago Lake

CHICAGO (WGN) A Chicago woman was taken into custody Saturday morning, and…
Puerto Rico bans gender-affirming care for trans people under 21

Puerto Rico Prohibits Gender-Affirming Care for Trans Individuals Under 21

(The Hill) – Transgender Puerto Ricans under the age of 21 will…
At least 34 dead after tourist boat capsizes during violent thunderstorm in Vietnam

At least 34 dead after tourist boat capsizes during violent thunderstorm in Vietnam

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! At least 34 people…
Truth about Harry and Meghan's money: ALISON BOSHOFF

The Real Story Behind Harry and Meghan’s Finances: ALISON BOSHOFF

When the Duchess of Sussex began sharing links on the ShopMy online…
Top federal watchdog says Rebuild Florida audit should be complete in six months

Federal Watchdog Predicts Completion of Rebuild Florida Audit in Half a Year

The Deputy Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban…
CEO Andy Byron RESIGNS after getting caught on Coldplay kiss cam

CEO Andy Byron Steps Down Following Coldplay Concert Spotlight

The CEO of Astronomer, who was seen getting close with a colleague…