The Supreme Court has decided, in a 7-2 ruling, that the Trump administration is allowed to proceed with plans to deport a group of convicted criminals to South Sudan, a country ravaged by conflict, despite the lack of any ties to those individuals.
Last month, the High Court overturned an injunction from U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy, which had limited the administration’s deportation efforts to third countries while not providing sufficient opportunity for immigrants to present torture claims.
Murphy contended that his later ruling, which found that a flight to South Sudan in May breached the injunction, still held significant weight. The administration characterized this as a challenge to the court’s authority and sought further condemnation of the judge’s actions.
The unsigned decision from the Supreme Court stated that Murphy’s judgments were invalid, asserting that the “May 21 correction order cannot enforce an injunction that has become unenforceable.”
Justice Sonia Sotomayor opposed this view, with Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson agreeing. They dismissed the notion that Murphy had been negligent, placing the accountability on the administration and its officials.
Sotomayor expressed concern, stating that the ruling “clearly indicates that while other litigators must adhere to rules, the administration seemingly has a direct line to the Supreme Court.”
Justice Elena Kagan, noted as the court’s third Democrat, also sided with the administration this time, despite feeling they should have lost previously.
“However, the majority sees things differently, and I’m unsure how the district court could compel compliance with its order when this court has placed a stay on it,” Kagan remarked.
Currently, federal authorities have been holding a group of eight immigrants with significant criminal backgrounds at military facilities in Djibouti since Murphy’s intervention in May.
The legal proceedings will continue in lower courts, but Thursday’s decision means there is no active court injunction preventing the administration from relocating immigrants to South Sudan at this time.
