ACLU Sues Over Trump Expansion of Fast-Track Deportation Process

The American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit on Monday over the Trump Administration’s expansion of a fast-track deportation process. The legal challenge comes after the Department of Homeland Security finalized a plan last month to bypass immigration courts and deport Illegal aliens who cannot prove they’ve been present continuously in the U.S. for two years or more.

The complaint, filed in D.C. federal court on behalf of three pro-immigration groups, argues the administration flouted regulatory law when it reworked the rapid deportation process, known as “expedited removal,” without first requesting public comment. In addition, the groups contend the change was not adequately justified and violates the constitutional right to challenge unlawful detention.

The notice issued by DHS in July also expanded the geographical scope of expedited removal nationwide. A 2004 regulation had limited the application of expedited removal to people caught within 100 miles of a U.S. land border and arrested within 14 days of arrival.

ACLU said in the filing today that the new policy could subject hundreds of thousands of additional immigrants to rapid deportation “without any consideration of their family ties … or their strong ties to their communities.”

The Justice Department on Monday petitioned the Supreme Court to take up a separate case related to expedited removal. In that case, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit ruled in March that asylum seekers have the right to seek federal judicial review of an expedited removal order.

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