WASHINGTON—Yesterday, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals denied the Biden administration’s petition to stay—that is, suspend—a Texas federal district court ruling vacating its policy of releasing vast numbers of dangerous alien criminals, rather than detaining and deporting them as the law requires. The Immigration Reform Law Institute (IRLI) had filed a friend-of-the-court brief with the court urging that result.
The administration claims that Congress has stripped federal courts of jurisdiction to hear the case, and thus the district court had no authority to issue its ruling. The Fifth Circuit agreed with IRLI rather than the administration, however, finding that the jurisdictional statute at issue did not deprive the courts of jurisdiction over this case, because the district court had vacated the administration’s policy.
“Had the administration won its stay, it would have gone on releasing criminal aliens while its appeal of the district court’s ruling wound through the courts,” said Dale L. Wilcox, executive director and general counsel of IRLI. “We are pleased that didn’t happen, and applaud the Fifth Circuit for denying the administration the extra time it sought to violate the law and endanger Americans.”
The case is Texas v. United States, No. 22-40367 (Fifth Circuit).
