SCOTUS Rules On Undocumented Immigrant’s Case & Justice Barrett Delivers Her First Opinion

March 5, 2021

The Supreme Court yesterday made it harder for immigrants who have lived in the U.S. for a long time to fight deportation. SCOTUS ruled 5-3 against an immigrant who lived illegally in the country for 25 years. CLEMENTE PEREIDA argued he wrongfully faced deportation for a relatively minor crime of using a fake Social Security card. SCOTUS found Pereida didn’t meet the burden to show he should have been allowed to present his case to avoid deportation. JUSTICE NEIL GORSUCH wrote for the majority and JUSTICE STEPHEN BREYER wrote for the three dissenters. Breyer noted the risk of “adding time and complexity to immigration proceedings” and making them “less fair and less predictable.” The court split along ideological lines.

Yesterday was also the day SCOTUS released the first opinion authored by its newest justice, AMY CONEY BARRETT. Her first signed majority opinion ruled against an environmental group that sought access to government records about potential harm being done to endangered species. The 7-2 ruling limited the scope of U.S. agency documents that would be subject to FOIA requests. JUSTICES BREYER and SOTOMAYOR dissented.

Pete Williams with NBC News reports the Justice Department asked SCOTUS on Thursday to dismiss three lawsuits over Trump-era immigration policy that led some areas to declare themselves “sanctuary cities.” That policy attempted to get police departments to tell federal agents when noncitizens were about to be released from custody. Williams notes, “In brief letters to the Supreme Court, the Justice Department said the cases should be dismissed, indicating that the government will no longer seek to enforce the policy.”