Supreme Court Keeps in Place Trump-Era Immigration Policy Allowing Asylum-Seekers to Be Quickly Turned Away – NBC Chicago

The Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed Title 42 — a Trump-era immigration policy implemented when the pandemic broke out to quickly expel asylum-seekers at the border — to remain in effect, putting a judge’s ruling that would have ended it last week on hold.

The court voted 5-4 to grant an emergency request by 19 Republican state attorneys general who sought to intervene in defense of the policy. The decision puts on hold a ruling by Washington-based U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan, who said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s implementation of the policy was “arbitrary and capricious.” Sullivan’s ruling was due to go into effect Dec. 21.

Conservative Justice Neil Gorsuch joined the three liberals on the court in voting against the stay request.

The Supreme Court also agreed to hear oral arguments and rule on whether the states can intervene, with a decision due by the end of June.

The court’s intervention averts what many had predicted would be an additional surge of people seeking to enter the United States at a time when border crossings are already high. Without the policy in place, people seeking asylum would be able to enter the U.S., where they could be waiting for years for a court date if they pass their initial interview with authorities.

Read the full story here on NBCNews.com

The public health rule known as Title 42 was used during the pandemic to block more than 1.7 million attempts to enter the U.S.