Got TIPS or BREAKING NEWS? Please call 1-284-442-8000 direct/can also WhatsApp same number or Email ALL news to:newsvino@outlook.com;                               ads call 1-284-440-6666

US court blocks strict new immigration law in Texas

March 20th, 2024 | Tags:
A court has frozen Texas's controversial immigration law, one of the toughest of its kind, in a case being closely watched across the US. Photo: Internet Source
BBC

TEXAS, USA - A court has frozen Texas's controversial immigration law, one of the toughest of its kind, in a case being closely watched across the US.

The legislation would allow officials in Texas to detain and prosecute anyone they think has entered the country illegally, superseding federal powers.

The law briefly came into force on Tuesday for a few hours during a legal back and forth between courts.

On Wednesday the US appeals court will hear the case.

The SB4 law in Texas was due to come into effect on 5 March but President Joe Biden's administration challenged it on the grounds that immigrant detention should remain in their hands.

Migrant arrivals at the southern US border have risen to record highs during his administration, making it a top concern among US voters ahead of November's presidential election.

That has led Texas to take stronger action on its border with Mexico and if the courts uphold its new law then other US states may follow.

Mexico has criticised the new law as anti-immigrant and has said it will refuse to accept any migrants deported by Texas authorities.

The decision to freeze the law is the latest in a string of judicial rulings deciding its fate. 

If it were to come back into effect, it would mark a significant shift in how immigration enforcement is handled, as courts have previously ruled that only the federal government can enforce the country's immigration laws - not individual US states.

Crossing the US border illegally is already a federal crime, but violations are usually handled as civil cases by the immigration court system.

Under SB4, punishments for illegal entry or re-entry into Texas range up to 20 years in prison. It is not clear if any migrants were detained during the few hours the law was briefly in effect.

The ruling is the latest in a series of court rulings over whether SB4 can go ahead.

In January, the Biden administration sued the state of Texas and the following month a district court ruled that SB4 was illegal.

It blocked it from taking effect over concerns it would lead to each US state having its own immigration laws.

Soon after, the New Orleans-based US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit - the federal appeals court responsible for the area - said the law may take effect as it considered the appeal, unless the Supreme Court intervened.

The Biden administration then filed an emergency request to the Supreme Court to uphold the district court's freeze while the litigation was under way. 

Leave a Reply



Create a comment


Submit comment

Create a comment

Submit comment
Disclaimer: Virgin Islands News Online (VINO) welcomes your thoughts, feedback, views, bloggs and opinions. However, by posting a blogg you are agreeing to post comments or bloggs that are relevant to the topic, and that are not defamatory, liable, obscene, racist, abusive, sexist, anti-Semitic, threatening, hateful or an invasion of privacy. Violators may be excluded permanently from making contributions. Please view our declaimer above this article. We thank you in advance for complying with VINO's policy.

Follow Us On

Disclaimer: All comments posted on Virgin Islands News Online (VINO) are the sole views and opinions of the commentators and or bloggers and do not in anyway represent the views and opinions of the Board of Directors, Management and Staff of Virgin Islands News Online and its parent company.