Supreme Court Expands Border Powers to Detain Green Card Holders

The Supreme Court of the United States ruled 6-3 in Blanche v. Lau that border officers may treat returning lawful permanent residents as applicants for admission based on pending criminal allegations without requiring clear and convincing evidence of a crime. Justice Clarence Thomas, writing for the majority, stated that the Immigration and Nationality Act does not impose such a high evidentiary burden, allowing the government to parole or detain residents facing charges of crimes involving moral turpitude until a conviction is reached.

The decision reverses a Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruling and stems from a 2012 case involving Muk Choi Lau, a Chinese national and green card holder denied re-entry at John F. Kennedy International Airport due to trademark counterfeiting charges. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented, arguing the ruling grants the executive branch a massive blank check to rewrite immigration law and leaves legal residents in immigration limbo.

Simultaneously, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled 2-1 that the Donald Trump administration may expand its fast-track deportation process. This overturns a lower court ruling by Judge Jia Cobb and allows the Department of Homeland Security to apply expedited removal to non-citizens apprehended anywhere in the U.S. interior if they cannot prove they have resided in the country for more than two years. The DHS General Counsel characterized these judicial outcomes as vindications of the agency's authority to prevent criminals from entering the country.