PENSACOLA, Fla. — A U.S. District Court judge in Florida ruled to deny a stay in an ongoing case on U.S. immigration policy.
The Department of Homeland Security had hoped the judge would temporarily allow them to continue with a more lenient release policy. However, Judge T. Kent Wetherell denied this request on Monday.
What You Need To Know
- Last week, the court granted Florida's motion to put a temporary block on the Department of Homeland Security's new parole policy
- The Department of Justice requested a stay on this decision, an attempt to lift the block on the policy, though the judge denied this late Monday
- The policy would allow the Department of Homeland Security to allow migrants into the country under the promise they report back to ICE within 60 days
- Proponents of the policy say it makes the process quicker; opponents say the measure provides little oversight to those entering the country
Those who enter the U.S. illegally and who are not held in custody or immediately expelled from the country are typically given what is called a “notice to appear.” It includes a court date and, according to the Associated Press, some sort of monitoring with immigration officials.
The process of giving migrants a court date can be time-consuming. AP reports this can take up to two hours to process a single person.
Meanwhile, the proposed process from the Department of Homeland Security, which is still on hold, only takes about 20 minutes. But some argue it doesn’t offer enough oversight to those released into the country.
“To any reasonable American, this is insanity. Biden’s effort to subject Texas communities to the costs and chaos of unending, out-of-control illegal immigration will not go unchallenged, and we’re taking him to court to stop this unlawful policy,” wrote Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in a release.
While Florida is not along the southern border, an immigration attorney tells Spectrum News the state is arguing it could be harmed by the release of migrants.
“The argument they’re trying to make to the court is: the easier you make it for people to get out of detention, the easier it will be for them to get to Florida,” said attorney Leon Fresco, a partner with Holland & Knight.
This all comes as Title 42 expired last week. The pandemic-era policy allowed the U.S. to quickly turn away migrants at the southern border, but it was lifted as the health emergency ended. As it expired, experts worried migrants would flood the borders after being turned away prior.
In the court ruling, the judge cited an article from CNN where the Department of Homeland Security Secretary said migrants at the southern border are “markedly down over what they were prior to the end of Title 42.”
Given the statement, the judge found there was not an urgent need to expedite migrants’ process and provide less oversight.