Trump’s attempt to increase the number of swift deportations of migrants, according to a judge, is against due process.

A Trump administration initiative to expedite the deportation of migrants held in the U.S. interior was barred by a federal judge on Friday, citing a breach of due process.

Judge Jia Cobb of the US District Court stated that the individuals the administration is currently targeting have “long since entered” the US, in contrast to migrants captured at or near the border, who had traditionally been subject to expedited removal.

Cobb, who was appointed to the federal bench in Washington, DC, by former President Joe Biden, stated, “That means that they have a weighty liberty interest in remaining here and therefore must be afforded due process under the Fifth Amendment.”

Early in President Donald Trump‘s second term, the drive to speed up deportations was implemented, broadening a Department of Homeland Security policy that had previously restricted expedited removal to migrants who had been in the country for less than two weeks and were detained within 100 miles of the US border. Cobb was especially offended by the administration’s belief that none of the migrants should be granted the right to due process.

Cobb continued, “The Government makes a truly shocking argument in defending this sleight of hand process: that those who entered the country illegally are entitled to no process under the Fifth Amendment and must accept whatever grace Congress affords them.” If that were true, everyone would be in danger, not just noncitizens. The government may accuse you of breaking the law, have you appear in a bare-bones hearing to “prove” your illegal entry, and then take you out right away.

The court went on to say, “The Government would deny you any substantial opportunity to refute its allegations by simply accusing you of entering unlawfully.” “Thankfully, the law does not require that.”

Create the Path At a hearing last month, New York, the immigrant advocacy group contesting the policy, claimed that it is already being used to deport individuals without a hearing after they are arrested in immigration court, which is against their constitutional right to due process. The group argues that DHS is abusing its power by employing the policy to hold people who are actively attempting to follow the law and because the law is unclear.

In the meantime, the government pleaded with the court to allow the policy to go into effect, claiming that it is a legitimate use of executive power meant to expedite enforcement and clear the backlog of cases.

In her ruling on Friday, Cobb stated, “The Court does not cast doubt on the constitutionality of the expedited removal statute, nor on its longstanding application at the border.” It simply states that the government must give due process to a sizable population residing in the country’s interior who have not previously been subject to expedited removal when applying the statute to them. The current protocols are inadequate.

A Trump rule to expedite the deportation of migrants who lawfully entered the country under humanitarian parole programs was also halted by Cobb earlier this month.

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