The Supreme Court has allowed Texas to begin arresting and deporting individuals who enter the country illegally, declining to block a new law despite objections from the Biden administration.
In a decision that saw three dissents, the justices declined the administration's request to temporarily halt the Texas law while legal proceedings continue in lower courts. As is customary with emergency orders, the court did not provide an explanation for its decision.
Texas is asserting expansive new powers to address illegal immigration, contending that the US Constitution grants the state the authority to defend itself against such influxes. Texas relies on a constitutional provision that allows states to engage in acts of war and other measures when they are “actually invaded.”
The statute, known as SB4, makes it a state crime to illegally enter or reenter the US through Texas. The measure lets state judges order some undocumented immigrants to leave the country, tasking Texas law-enforcement officers with ensuring compliance.
A federal district judge halted the enforcement of the law last month, but the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans temporarily suspended that ruling while the case is under appeal. Subsequently, the administration petitioned the Supreme Court to overturn the 5th Circuit's decision and prevent the law from being implemented.
The 5th Circuit is scheduled to hear arguments on April 3 regarding this matter.
Read the case here.
