Federal appeals court rules against Trump’s immigration crackdown, comparing his detention centers to Japanese internment camps

A federal appeals court has rejected a key part of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. They ruled that the government cannot automatically detain certain immigrants without giving them a chance to seek release on bond.

Per AP, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued the ruling in a 2-1 decision, becoming the ninth federal appeals court to reject the administration’s interpretation of immigration law. The ruling also drew a direct comparison to some of the darkest episodes in U.S. history.

Writing for the majority, Judge Nicole Berner, joined by Judge Barbara Keenan, said the administration’s approach to mass detention without due process “harkens back to some of the darkest moments in our country’s history.” She specifically pointed to the wartime detention of Japanese Americans and the detention of Chinese immigrants in the late 1800s, calling the current policy even more expansive than those “shameful and abhorrent” episodes.

The ruling puts Trump’s detention policy under even more pressure

The case centers on the administration’s effort to require mandatory detention for immigrants inside the United States who are facing deportation proceedings. Under the policy, many of those detained would not receive a bond hearing to argue for their release while their cases continue.

The majority said Congress would have been far clearer if it intended to give the government authority to detain millions of people under the interpretation being advanced by the administration. Judge Nicole Berner wrote that the policy could affect the constitutional due process rights of millions of noncitizens. This includes people who have lived and worked in the United States for years.

The ruling was not unanimous. Judge Allison Rushing, a Trump appointee, dissented and argued that the relevant immigration law requires the detention of certain noncitizens who were not lawfully admitted into the country.

The legal fight could now determine how much authority the government has to detain immigrants living inside the country without first giving them an opportunity to seek release. The Trump administration has now lost 9 of 11 appeals court rulings on the issue, with two circuits upholding the policy, a split that makes Supreme Court review increasingly likely.

The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement it remains “confident in its legal position regarding mandatory detention” and has already asked the Supreme Court to take up the case.