Major appeals court blasts the government, protecting thousands from a terrifying return to a ‘collapsing rule of law’

A major U.S. appeals court has put the brakes on President Trump’s immigration crackdown, refusing to let it revoke legal protections for over 350,000 Haitians who are currently living and working in the U.S. This decision prevents them from being sent back to their home country, which is currently struggling with severe gang violence.

A 2-1 panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit recently rejected the administration’s request to pause a previous February 2 ruling. That initial ruling had blocked the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from ending Haiti’s Temporary Protected Status (TPS).  Per Reuters, TPS is a humanitarian program designed to shield eligible migrants from deportation, allowing them to legally work in the United States. It’s a lifeline for many.

Under the leadership of outgoing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, the department has been actively working to terminate TPS designations for a dozen countries. The administration’s argument has been that the TPS program was never intended to function as a “de facto amnesty,” suggesting it had gone beyond its original purpose.

I wonder what circumstances, other than being white, would qualify for protection in this administration

The administration had asked the D.C. Circuit to stay U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes’ February order while they prepared their appeal. Judge Reyes’s decision came from a class-action lawsuit filed by Haitians who were trying to prevent DHS from making them vulnerable to deportation. 

Judge Reyes had found that Secretary Noem’s November move to end the Haitians’ legal protections likely violated established TPS termination procedures, and even more significantly, the U.S. Constitution’s Fifth Amendment guarantee of equal protection under the law. That’s a pretty strong legal challenge right there.

On appeal, the administration pointed out that the U.S. Supreme Court had previously allowed it to end TPS for Venezuelans twice. However, U.S. Circuit Judges Florence Pan and Brad Garcia, both Biden appointees, saw a clear distinction in these cases. They stated that Haitians sent home would “be vulnerable to violence amid a ‘collapsing rule of law’ and lack access to life-sustaining medical care.” 

Not everyone on the panel agreed. U.S. Circuit Judge Justin Walker, a Trump appointee, unsurprisingly dissented from the majority opinion. He argued that the current case and the earlier Supreme Court litigation involving Venezuelans were “the legal equivalent of fraternal, if not identical, twins,” suggesting they should be treated similarly. It should be noted that courts have already challenged many of the Venezuelan deportations.

Haiti was first granted TPS back in 2010, following a devastating earthquake that crippled the nation. Since then, the U.S. has repeatedly renewed this designation, most recently under the Biden administration in July 2024. At that time, DHS cited Haiti’s “simultaneous economic, security, political, and health crises,” noting that these issues were driven by powerful gangs and the severe absence of a functioning government.