On May 29, a 2-1 panel of the New Orleans-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit temporarily lifted an injunction that had prevented enforcement of central parts of a Texas law targeting people suspected of having crossed the U.S.-Mexico border illegally.
The order stayed an injunction issued by U.S. District Judge David Ezra in Austin on May 14. Judge Ezra had granted the injunction in a class-action suit filed by civil-rights groups representing thousands of individuals who could fall under the law's provisions, concluding the state measure improperly interfered with the federal government's authority over immigration, naturalization and deportation.
Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton - who is a candidate for the U.S. Senate - promptly appealed Judge Ezra's ruling, leading to the appeals court's May 29 action. Paxton's office did not provide a response to a request for comment.
The organizations that brought the most recent challenge - the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Texas and the Texas Civil Rights Project - characterized the appeals court decision as disappointing and said they will continue to contest what they called an unlawful law.
The litigation history is complex. Earlier this year, an appeals court in April had overturned a prior injunction that had barred enforcement of the Republican-backed measure known as SB 4. The article's account notes that the Trump administration had dropped a case the Biden administration brought challenging the law. In a separate earlier vote, a 5th Circuit panel concluded by a 10-7 tally that certain immigrant-rights organizations lacked standing to pursue their challenge.
To address the standing issue, the new lawsuit brought by ACLU-affiliated groups was filed on behalf of non-citizens who might be subject to four principal provisions of the state law. Among those provisions are one that would make it a state crime for a person to reenter the United States after deportation even in cases where that person has federal permission to return or has since obtained lawful permanent resident status, and another that would authorize magistrate judges in Texas to issue deportation orders.
The appeals court's temporary stay means that, for now, Texas authorities can proceed to enforce the aspects of the law that were at the center of the challenge while the legal disputes continue to work through the courts.
Legal status: The case remains in litigation as the new ACLU-backed suit pursues claims on behalf of potentially affected non-citizens and as the appellate process unfolds.
Immediate implications: The ruling allows elements of the law to take effect pending further judicial review; the parties involved indicate they will continue to press their respective legal arguments.