In January 2019, the Department of Homeland Security implements new policy of returning many Central American asylum applicants to Mexico while an immigration judge resolves their claims. District court: This policy is unlawful. Ninth Circuit (motions panel): Actually, the gov’t is likely enough to win that we shall allow the policy to proceed pending appeal. Concurrence: In practice, though, it seems likely this policy is returning people to Mexico even though they’ll be persecuted there. Concurrence in result: There is no statutory basis for DHS’s policy, and the merits panel should recognize the government’s position as “baseless arguments in support of an illegal policy.”
