Appeals court halts enforcement of Texas immigration law hours after Supreme Court order

Just hours after the Supreme Court allowed a Texas law to take effect that gave state law enforcement the authority to arrest people they suspect of entering the country illegally, a federal appeals court issued an order that puts it on hold.

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals order came late Tuesday evening. The appeals panel issued a stay ahead of oral arguments before the court Wednesday.

Earlier in the day, the conservative majority on the Supreme Court rejected an emergency application from the Biden administration, which argued the law is a violation of federal authority.

The three liberal justices publicly dissented from the court’s order that allowed the statute, S.B. 4, to take effect. Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson argued the statute will invite “further chaos and crisis” in immigration enforcement.

The law, signed by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R), makes crossing the border illegally a crime in the Lone Star State and enables local law enforcement to arrest those suspected of crossing the U.S.-Mexico border, before facing deportation to Mexico or jail time.

The Supreme Court didn’t address whether the law is constitutional. Instead, the high court sent the measure to the appellate court, which made the ruling later Tuesday evening.

Critics of the bill say the law could lead to civil rights violations and racial profiling.

Mexico is also not responsible for accepting deportations of anyone except Mexican citizens. The country said it would not “under any circumstances” accept the return of migrants from the state of Texas, The Associated Press reported.

“Mexico reiterates the legitimate right to protect the rights of its nationals in the United States and to determine its own policies regarding entry into its territory,” the government said, per the AP.

On Tuesday, the White House called the law “another example of Republican officials politicizing the border while blocking real solutions.”

During the short time the law was in effect, Texas officials did not announce any arrests.