Comment on Fast-Track Deportation Ruling

WASHINGTON—A federal appeals court has ruled that a lawsuit against the Trump administration’s policy that sought to massively expand fast-track deportations without a fair legal process can continue.

The American Immigration Council, the American Civil Liberties Union, National Immigration Litigation Alliance, and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP are challenging the policy, which was blocked by a federal court in September, prompting the administration’s appeal.

The court today held that the lawsuit was properly brought, but rejected the claim that the administration had failed to follow the procedures provided under the Administrative Procedure Act.

“This is only the first round in our fight against the Trump administration’s illegal attempt to remove hundreds of thousands of people from the U.S. without any legal recourse. The court ruled that our suit was properly brought and we can now pursue our statutory and constitutional claims in order to once again block this cruel policy,” said ACLU attorney Anand Balakrishnan, who argued the case.

The lawsuit, Make the Road New York v. Wolf, was filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., on behalf of Make the Road New York, LUPE (La Unión del Pueblo Entero), and We Count!

“This is not the last word on whether the Trump administration can fast track the deportation of thousands of people without regard for their due process rights and the impact these deportations will have on families and communities throughout the United States,” said Kristin Macleod-Ball, staff attorney at the American Immigration Council.

Ruling is available online here

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For more information, contact:

Maria Frausto at the American Immigration Council, at [email protected] or 202-507-7526; 
Inga Sarda-Sorensen at the ACLU, 347-514-3984, [email protected];
Trina Realmuto at the National Immigration Litigation Alliance, 617-819-4447, [email protected].