Federal judge again declares that DACA is illegal

A Federal judge ruled that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which prevents the deportation of immigrants brought to the U.S. as children, is illegal.

Current state of events: U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen agreed with Texas and other states suing to halt DACA, but did not order an immediate end to the program.
* Hanen’s decision leaves the program intact for current enrollees and does not order the termination of DACA within two years.
* Though sympathetic to DACA recipients and their families, Hanen emphasized the solution lies with legislature, not the executive or judicial branches, stating, “The Executive Branch cannot usurp the power bestowed on Congress by the Constitution — even to fill a void.”

Critiques of the ruling: Both the Biden administration and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) disagreed with Judge Hanen’s decision.
* Thomas Saenz, president and general counsel of MALDEF, stated that Hanen has “consistently erred” in his analysis of DACA’s legality.
* The Biden administration, expressing deep disappointment with the ruling, continued to uphold DACA as lawful and pledged to defend the policy against legal challenges.

Possible outcome: The expected appeal of the ruling could bring DACA’s legality before the Supreme Court for a third time.
* The fate of the program will likely depend upon these future court decisions, and possibly, definitive DACA-like legislation being passed by Congress.

By the numbers: There were 578,680 people enrolled in DACA at the end of March.
* Over the years, DACA has faced various legal challenges with its ultimate status as a deportation relief program remaining uncertain.

View original article on NPR

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