A federal judge in Maryland on Monday ordered the Trump administration to explain how it will enforce President Donald Trump’s executive order that would deny citizenship to children born on U.S. soil to unlawful immigrants or those on temporary immigrant status, after the Supreme Court on Friday granted a partial stay of nationwide injunctions issued against Trump’s order.
During a hearing on Monday to consider an emergency motion for class action relief in response to the Supreme Court’s new guidance on injunctions, U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman pressed the government on whether it will deport babies who might be subject to the executive order before she rules on the class action motion.
“What I’m wondering is if the United States will be seeking to deport babies who are subject to the executive order, who are not subject to my injunction — meaning they are not plaintiffs — pending a resolution on the motion for a preliminary injunction?” Judge Boardman asked.
MORE: SCOTUS limits nationwide injunctions, partial win for Trump on birthright citizenship
“No,” Justice Department attorney Brad Rosenberg said, adding that government agencies have been tasked “with developing guidelines for implementation of the executive order.”
Judge Boardman ordered the government to submit a written statement by Tuesday on “the government’s view of what it can and can’t do under the executive order.”
“Particularly on Section 3, the enforcement section … just to get to the heart of this,” Judge Boardman said. “I want to know if the government thinks that it can start removing children from the United States who are subject to terms of the executive order and who are not the plaintiffs.”
William Powell, an attorney speaking for CASA, the immigrant advocacy group that filed an amended complaint and emergency motion for class action relief, said during the hearing that the Supreme Court ruling has left plaintiffs feeling fearful.
“I think one thing we have documented in the record is the incredible stress, anxiety and fear that our plaintiffs are experiencing because they’re not lawyers,” Powell said. “It is confusing to them and we can’t really assure them the order is fully blocked, because it’s not.”
Powell added that CASA and other groups have had “substantial outreach” from people who want to join the class action.
“They want to see how fast we can get class relief because they are afraid about their children and their babies and what their status might be,” he said.
The Supreme Court, in its ruling Friday, said it was not deciding whether the executive order from Trump was constitutional, but rather focusing on whether a single judge has the authority to issue universal injunctions.
“Government’s applications for partial stays of the preliminary injunctions are granted, but only to the extent that the injunctions are broader than necessary to provide complete relief to each plaintiff with standing to sue,” the opinion read.
