FederalImmigration & BorderFederal Judge Will Block Biden Administration’s Termination of Title 42 Illegal Alien Expulsions

The policy was instituted by the Trump administration and continued under Biden as a measure to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
April 25, 2022
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A federal judge has granted a temporary injunction barring the Biden administration from terminating enforcement of Title 42, according to Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt.

“In a lawsuit originally filed by Missouri, Louisiana, and Arizona, our Office just obtained a temporary restraining order to keep Title 42 in place. This is a huge victory for border security, but the fight continues on,” Schmitt wrote on social media.

U.S. District Judge Robert Summerhays indicated during a status conference on Monday that he intends to grant the temporary restraining order, according to court documents. The case is in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana.

The details of the order will be finalized later and the litigants will “attempt to reach agreement,” per the minutes of the hearing.

Summerhays was nominated by former President Trump and confirmed to the bench in 2018.

The Texan Tumbler

Though the State of Texas is not a party to the lawsuit, multiple Republican members of Texas’ congressional delegation submitted briefs.

Reps. Joey Arrington (R-TX-19), Brain Babin (R-TX-36), Michael Burgess (R-TX-26), Michael Cloud (R-TX-27), Louie Gohmert (R-TX-1), Lance Gooden (R-TX-5), Ronny Jackson (R-TX-13), August Pfluger (R-TX-11), Beth Van Duyne (R-TX-24), Randy Weber (R-TX-14), and Roger Williams (R-TX-25) are listed.

The states involved in the action are Louisiana, Arizona, Missouri, West Virginia, South Carolina, Florida, Mississippi, Wyoming, Georgia, Alabama, Alaska, Utah, Tennessee, Idaho, Ohio, Arkansas, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Kentucky, and Kansas.

Various federal officials, including Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Chris Magnus, are named defendants in the suit.

The Trump administration originally invoked Title 42 of the U.S. Code to protect the public against COVID-19. About half of the illegal aliens apprehended by CBP in March were set for expulsion under the title.

The federal government and Governor Greg Abbott feared that there could be up to 18,000 enforcement encounters with illegal aliens every day if Title 42 was terminated as scheduled on May 23.

Last week, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed his own suit against the Biden administration to stop the termination of Title 42 enforcement.

A copy of the minutes of the status conference can be found below.

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Hayden Sparks

Hayden Sparks is a senior reporter for The Texan and a lifelong resident of the Lone Star State. He has coached competitive speech and debate and has been involved in politics since a young age. One of Hayden's favorite quotes is by Sam Houston: "Texas has yet to learn submission to any oppression, come from what source it may."