On Monday, March 16, the federal appeals court ruled that the Donald Trump administration may continue the expedited deportation of migrants to countries with which they have no ties while legal proceedings over the policy continue.
The decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit was issued by a 2—1 vote. The judges did not publish a written explanation. At the same time, the panel accelerated the timetable for the next stage of the case.
As part of its tightening immigration policy, the Trump administration has expanded the practice of deporting migrants not to their countries of origin but to so-called “third countries.” To that end, Washington has concluded agreements with Cameroon, South Sudan and Eswatini, among others, which have agreed to accept deportees.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security argues that the policy is aimed at expelling some of the most “barbaric” individuals living in the country illegally. In court proceedings, the Trump administration has primarily insisted that federal judges do not have the authority to intervene in such policy decisions.
The panel’s majority consisted of Judge Jeffrey Howard, appointed by former President George W. Bush, and Judge Seth Aframe, appointed by former President Joe Biden. The sole dissent came from Judge Lara Montecalvo, also a Biden appointee.
The ruling effectively lifts restrictions previously imposed by U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy—another Biden appointee—who is overseeing a class-action lawsuit filed a year ago by four foreign nationals.
“Although this order unfortunately delays the implementation of the ruling, we appreciate that the First Circuit has directed an expedited review of the merits of the government’s appeal,” said Trina Realmuto, executive director of the National Immigration Litigation Alliance, who represents the migrants.
Last year, the Trump administration already turned to the Supreme Court and secured a ruling in its favor after Murphy, at an earlier stage of the proceedings, restricted the practice of deportations to third countries. However, in a final order issued last month, the judge said circumstances had changed significantly and again blocked the policy.
“This is not normal and it is illegal,” Murphy wrote.
Under his ruling, the administration must first attempt to deport migrants to the country typically designated for removal or to the country of their citizenship. If that proves impossible, migrants, the judge said, must be given a “meaningful opportunity” to challenge the deportation after a third country has been selected.
Murphy delayed the implementation of his ruling to allow the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit to consider the case. The new order keeps his ban suspended until the appeals process is completed.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security said the department’s position had “once again been affirmed.”
“The Biden administration allowed millions of illegal migrants to flood our country, and the Trump administration has the right to deport these criminal illegal migrants and eliminate this national security nightmare,” the statement said. “If activist judges had their way, foreign nationals so uniquely barbaric that even their own countries are unwilling to take them back—including convicted murderers, child rapists and drug traffickers—would be free on the streets of America.”