4-4 Ruling Could Lead to More Families Being Broken Up and Members Deported
The Supreme Court has just handed down a consequential ruling for millions of families who have undocumented members. After congressional inaction, President Barack Obama had signed executive orders prioritizing the deportation of criminals and other lawbreakers over the deportation of those who are undocumented but had not committed other offenses, especially those with family members who are American citizens.
The goal was to keep families together. The program allowed parents who are undocumented to stay in the country if they had children who are American citizens.
An appeals court ruled those orders illegal, and the U.S. Supreme Court in a 4-4 ruling just handed down, upheld the lower court’s ruling.Â
The President’s plan, as The New York Times notes, would have allowed “as many as five million unauthorized immigrants who are the parents of citizens or of lawful permanent residents to apply for a program that would spare them from deportation and provide them with work permits. The program was called Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents, or DAPA.”
The entire decision was one line:
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