A federal appeals court issued a temporary stay on a lower court's ruling that blocked the enforcement of a contentious Texas immigration law. This decision sets the stage for the law to become effective this week if the Supreme Court does not intervene.
A federal judge in Austin, Texas last week blocked the state government from implementing the law, Senate Bill 4, which enables state law enforcement authorities to arrest and detain individuals suspected of entering the country illegally.
In his Thursday ruling to halt the law, Judge David Alan Ezra expressed concern that “If allowed to proceed, SB 4 could open the door to each state passing its own version of immigration laws.”
Texas appealed the decision, with Governor Greg Abbott declaring, “We will not back down in our fight to protect our state — and our nation — from Biden's border crisis.”
This past weekend, the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals granted a temporary stay of Judge Ezra's decision but suspended its ruling for seven days, providing the Biden administration with an opportunity to appeal to the Supreme Court.
The law will stay blocked until March 9 unless the Supreme Court extends the hold. Initially scheduled to take effect on March 5, it remains in limbo pending further legal proceedings.
