Federal Judge Blocks Trump Immigration Policy Affecting 39 Countries

U.S. District Chief Judge John McConnell Jr. ruled on Friday that a Trump administration immigration policy, enacted after a National Guard shooting, illegally barred immigrants from 39 nations from receiving final decisions on asylum, work permits, green cards and citizenship. The judge said the policy "threw the lives of countless immigrants living in the United States into indeterminate legal limbo" and found the Department of Homeland Security’s actions "arbitrary and capricious."

The ruling affirms that the federal government cannot shut down lawful immigration pathways or discriminate based on national origin. Organizations representing plaintiffs hailed the decision as a precedent protecting legal immigration benefits. The policy had previously prevented applicants from African, Asian, Latin American and Middle Eastern countries from moving forward with their cases.

The decision does not affect asylum judges who decide cases at the border, nor does it impact other unrelated immigration directives.