The U.S. can resume deporting undocumented migrants to third countries without giving them a chance to contest their destinations, the Supreme Court ruled on Monday.
The decision by the conservative-dominated top court came in response to an emergency appeal by the Justice Department to lift a stay imposed by a lower court on so-called third-country deportations—meaning sending migrants to countries they do not originate from.
Three liberal justices, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson, dissented, but the decision went ahead in a 6-3 vote.
The Supreme Court did not explain the decision.
Justice Sotomayor, author of the dissent, accused the administration of “flagrantly unlawful conduct” that is “exposing thousands to the risk of torture or death”.
“The government has made clear in word and deed that it feels itself unconstrained by law, free to deport anyone anywhere without notice or an opportunity to be heard,” Sotomayor said.
The original case challenging third-country deportations will now be heard by an appeals court, but the Supreme Court’s move allows the removals to proceed for now.
Third countries that the Trump administration has deported undocumented migrants to include El Salvador, South Sudan and Libya.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) celebrated the Supreme Court decision as a “victory for the safety and security of the American people” and could now “clean up this national security nightmare”.
“If these activists judges had their way, aliens who are so uniquely barbaric that their own countries won’t take them back, including convicted murderers, child rapists and drug traffickers, would walk free on American streets,” DHS said in a post on X on Monday.
DHS can now execute its lawful authority and remove illegal aliens to a country willing to accept them. Fire up the deportation planes.
‘Meaningful opportunity’
In April, district judge Brian Murphy from Massachusetts ordered a halt to third-country deportations, saying migrants were not being given a “meaningful opportunity” to contest their expulsions.
Murphy ruled they should get at least 15 days to challenge their deportations and provide evidence of whether they may be at risk of torture or death if expelled.
The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court at the end of May to fast-track the deportation to South Sudan of eight men from Myanmar, Cuba, Vietnam, Laos, Mexico, and South Sudan. Only one of the eight was originally from South Sudan. The government said they had all been convicted of crimes.
Murphy blocked the deportation on 21 May, saying it violated his April court order.
The men were being flown to South Sudan, a country that has been decimated by war, when Murphy’s order came down. The men were then taken to a U.S. military base in Djibouti.
Reuters reported that the men are reportedly living in a converted shipping container while waiting for a decision on whether their deportation to South Sudan will continue.
Both Libya and South Sudan have denied any direct coordination with the U.S. on agreeing to accept deportees.
The Trump administration has defended the third-country deportations as necessary, saying the home countries of some of those who are targeted for removal often refuse to accept them.
During both his first and second terms, President Donald Trump has promised to remove millions of undocumented migrants from the U.S.
He has undertaken a number of measures to fast-track deportations since returning to the White House in January.
Numerous courts have blocked some of these attempts, including the Supreme Court, over concerns that due process rights of migrants are being ignored.