Liberals will be pleased. Conservative Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch sided with the left Tuesday on a ruling regarding federal immigration law.
Gorsuch’s vote decided the matter.
The court ruled 5-4 against the Trump administration. The matter revolves around an obscure provision of immigration law that deals with crimes of violence. Migrants who are convicted of such crimes are subject to deportation.
Gorsuch believes that the law is too vague.
“What does that mean? Just take the crime at issue in this case, California burglary, which applies to everyone from armed home intruders to door-to-door salesmen peddling shady products,” Gorsuch wrote in his opinion.
“How, on that vast spectrum, is anyone supposed to locate the ordinary case and say whether it includes a substantial risk of physical force? The truth is, no one knows… In my judgment, the Constitution demands more.”
The case centers around James Dimaya, a migrant who came to the U.S. in 1992. He was booked on multiple burglary charges in California, prompting the government to flag him for deportation.
The government believes that burglary is a crime of violence.
“He (Gorsuch) signaled pretty clearly he was leaning this way at argument, and it’s deeply consistent with [late] Justice [Antonin] Scalia’s majority opinion,” said University of Texas law professor Stephen Vladeck.
“As for the White House, they may well be pissed, but this is Gorsuch’s formalist textualism — and the real problem lies with the statute.”
President Trump praised Gorsuch’s nomination. He adds a conservative voice to the Supreme Court. He is, however, his own man. He’s not a Trump mouthpiece. Liberals blasted Gorsuch when he was nominated because they thought he would be too partisan.
The ruling is a setback for the Trump administration. However, the trend is clear. Immigration law is becoming a lot tougher.
(Source: New York Post)