Early this week, the U.S. Supreme Court lifted restrictions on immigration enforcement giving federal agents more flexibility to continue stopping and questioning people based on factors like ethnicity, language, or type of work.
The case was previously blocked by a federal judge in Los Angeles, ruling that ICE methods were unconstitutional, and amounted to racial profiling. However, the Supreme Court stayed the decision (6-3) , which allows agents to continue to carry out these tactics.
The Trump administration praised the ruling, saying it restores the ability of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to carry out their job. Former acting ICE director Tom Homan said agents are “well trained” and capable of establishing reasonable suspicion to make brief detentions.
“Officers every six months get Fourth Amendment refresher training, every six months,” said Homan. “They know the law around the Fourth Amendment, who can they arrest, where they need to rest, where they need to seize, what they need to detain for questioning.”
But Justice Sonia Sotomayor, joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, issued a sharp dissent. She warned that the decision threatens constitutional rights and could expose Latinos, including U.S. citizens, to unlawful stops.
“We should not have to live in a country where the Government can seize anyone who looks Latino, speaks Spanish, and appears to work a low wage job,” she wrote.
Justice Sotomayor’s dissent echoes the concerns raised by immigrant activists, that using factors like ethnicity, speaking spanish and type of work only adds fear to the immigrant community as well as American citizens with Latino descent.
Advocates also warn that while this ruling centers on Los Angeles and their nearby counties, it could set a precedent that could shape immigration enforcement nationwide.
