Federal judge extends order protecting refugees in Minnesota from being arrested and deported
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A federal judge on Friday extended his order protecting refugees in Minnesota who are lawfully in the U.S. from being arrested and deported, saying a Trump administration policy turns the “American Dream into a dystopian nightmare.”
U.S. District Judge John Tunheim granted a motion by advocates for refugees to convert a temporary restraining order that he issued in January into a more permanent preliminary injunction.
The order applies only in Minnesota. But the implications of a new national policy on refugees that the Department of Homeland Security announced Feb. 19 were a major part of the discussion at a hearing held by the judge the next day.
The Trump administration asserts it has the right to arrest potentially tens of thousands of refugees across the U.S. who entered the country legally but don’t yet have green cards. A new Homeland Security memo interprets immigration law to say that refugees applying for green cards must return to federal custody one year after they were admitted to the U.S. so that their applications can be reviewed.
The judge, however, expressed disbelief in a 66-page opinion.
“This Court will not allow federal authorities to use a new and erroneous statutory interpretation to terrorize refugees who immigrated to this country under the promise that they would be welcomed and allowed to live in peace, far from the persecution they fled,” Tunheim said.
The judge said the U.S. decades ago promised refugees fleeing persecution that they could build a new life after rigorous background checks.
“We promised them the hope that one day they could achieve the American Dream,” Tunheim said. “The Government’s new policy breaks that promise — without congressional authorization — and raises serious constitutional concerns. The new policy turns the refugees’ American Dream into a dystopian nightmare.”
Justice Department attorney Brantley Mayers said during a hearing last week that the government should have the right to arrest refugees one year after entering the U.S., but indicated that would not always happen.
The judge noted that one refugee in the case, identified as D. Doe, was arrested in January after being told that someone had struck his parked car.
“He was immediately flown to Texas, where he was interrogated about his refugee status. He was kept in ‘shackles and handcuffs’ for sixteen hours. D. Doe was ultimately released on the streets of Texas, left to find his way back to Minnesota,” Tunheim said.