A US appeals court on Tuesday put on hold a Republican-backed Texas law allowing state authorities to arrest and prosecute people suspected of illegally crossing the US-Mexico border.
In a 2-1 decision, a panel of the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans rejected Texas’ request to allow the law to take effect while the state appeals the decision of the judge who blocked it to an appeals court.
The law, officially called SB4, has become a hot-button issue in a broader fight between Texas and the Biden administration over border security and immigration. It would make it a state crime to illegally enter or re-enter Texas from another country, and give state judges the power to order violators to leave the US, sentencing them to up to 20 years in prison for refusing to comply.
The 5th Circuit panel’s decision was the latest of three hasty rulings on the law’s status. Last week, the Supreme Court allowed it to take effect, but hours later, the 5th Circuit panel reinstated US District Judge David Ezra’s February injunction blocking its enforcement.
Ezra, who is based in Austin, cited a 2012 US Supreme Court decision involving an Arizona law that states cannot enact immigration enforcement measures that conflict with federal law. A 5th Circuit panel is scheduled to hear arguments on the merits of the state’s appeal on 3 April.
The lawsuit, filed by the Biden administration in January, argued that the measure violates the US Constitution and federal law because it interferes with the US government’s authority to regulate immigration and contradicts a 2012 Supreme Court decision.
The administration said immigration is the exclusive prerogative of the federal government and that the Texas law would violate complex US laws that establish deportation procedures and allow migrants to seek asylum and other legal status.
Immigration and security at the border with Mexico are hot topics for voters ahead of the US election on 5 November, in which the Democratic president is seeking a second term. Donald Trump, the Republican nominee, has pursued restrictive immigration policies during his presidency.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed the law into law in December, stressing that it was a necessary step to address the rise in illegal entries. Texas officials have blamed Biden for the increase in illegal border crossings, which they say are draining state resources and threatening public safety, The Biden administration in turn has said that intervention by Texas and other states is only exacerbating the problem at the border.
