WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal appeals court has blocked President Donald Trump's executive order that suspended asylum access, a crucial aspect of the Republican president's strategy to tighten immigration control at the southern U.S. border.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled on Friday that current immigration laws entitle individuals to seek asylum at U.S. borders, declaring that the president does not hold the authority to bypass these legal rights.
The panel asserted that the Immigration and Nationality Act does not permit the president to independently eliminate the right of asylum seekers to apply or to implement selective procedures against anti-torture claims.
Judge J. Michelle Childs wrote in the opinion, The power by proclamation to temporarily suspend the entry of specified foreign individuals into the United States does not include the authority to override the mandatory process set forth in the INA for the summary removal of foreign individuals. Childs was nominated to the bench by Democratic President Joe Biden.
The administration has not provided immediate comments in response to the ruling.
Lee Gelernt, an attorney for the ACLU, hailed the appellate decision as vital for those fleeing life-threatening situations who had previously been denied even a hearing to present their asylum claims under the controversial directive.
Meanwhile, Judge Justin Walker, a Trump appointee, expressed a partial dissent, suggesting that while immigrants are protected against removal to dangerous countries, the administration retains the capacity to broadly deny asylum applications.
However, Walker ultimately concurred with the majority view that prohibits the president from transferring migrants to potentially harmful nations or revoking established procedures designed to protect them.
The case involved an appeal against actions taken during the Trump administration, which sought to limit access to asylum. The impactful ruling could reshape the future of asylum policies in the U.S.
