Supreme Court stays order blocking immigration stops based on race, language – JURIST
The US Supreme Court on Monday stayed a federal judge’s order that had restricted immigration enforcement operations in the Los Angeles area, allowing the government to resume controversial raids while the case proceeds through appeals.
The case stems from federal immigration raids that began in Los Angeles in June. Officers targeted locations known to be frequented by immigrants and detained people based on factors such as ethnicity and language, according to court documents.
Critics have decried the evident lack of due process. As described by the ACLU, which, alongside a spate of other advocacy groups and clinics, filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of several individuals and organizations that were impacted by the raids:
US Border Patrol agents have relied on perceived race or ethnicity to select who to stop, conducted suspicionless stops, executed warrantless home raids and carried out illegal worksite operations.
In July, the US District Court for the Central District of California found that these stops appeared to be based on four factors: an individual’s race or ethnicity; whether they spoke Spanish or accented English; if they were located at a place frequented by immigrants; and what they appeared to do for work. The District Court concluded that the stops violated the Fourth Amendment of the US Constitution, which protects individuals from unlawful searches and seizures. The court issued a temporary injunction, barring federal officials from making stops on the basis of these four factors alone pending the outcome of the case.
In an unsigned order released Monday, the Supreme Court stayed the injunction, effectively enabling federal officers to resume their raids uninhibited.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote a concurring opinion supporting the stay, arguing the government demonstrated a “fair prospect of success” on both legal standing and Fourth Amendment grounds. He noted that about 10% of the Los Angeles region’s population is in the country illegally, making enforcement “especially pronounced” there.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor, joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, issued a sharp dissent calling the majority’s decision “yet another grave misuse of our emergency docket.” She went on:
We should not have to live in a country where the Government can seize anyone who looks Latino, speaks Spanish, and appears to work a low wage job. Rather than stand idly by while our constitutional freedoms are lost, I dissent.
The case will continue through the lower courts while the government’s immigration operations proceed under the stay.
