US judge halts Trump’s policy barring domestic abuse victims

Washington: A US judge struck down Trump administration policies aimed at restricting asylum claims by people citing gang or domestic violence in their home countries and ordered the US government to bring back six deported migrants to reconsider their cases.

The ruling is the latest legal setback for the White House on immigration. Last month, a judge in San Francisco ordered a halt to a policy that prevented those entering illegally from Mexico from seeking asylum.

The policy at the centre of Wednesday’s ruling sought to limit the ability of immigrants to fight expedited deportation by narrowing the grounds for claiming “credible fear” if they returned home, the first step in a long asylum process.

Thousands of people have travelled in caravans this year toward the southern US border to escape gang violence and poverty in Honduras and El Salvador.

The policy was challenged in a District of Columbia lawsuit brought by a dozen adults and children.

US Judge Emmet Sullivan said in a 107-page opinion the policy violated both immigration and administrative law.

“And because it is the will of Congress – not the whims of the executive – that determines the standard for expedited removal, the court finds that those policies are unlawful,” Sullivan wrote.

In a statement, the Department of Justice said administration policies sought to follow Congress’ requirement that asylum be limited to those with a fear of persecution based on their race, nationality, religion, political opinion or membership in a social group.

The department filed a request to stay the court’s orders while the government appealed. Sullivan had not responded to that request.

The White House also criticised the decision, saying in a statement that the ruling would further overwhelm immigration courts with “meritless cases” and encourage illegal immigration to the United States.

Sullivan, an appointee of US President Bill Clinton, made headlines on Tuesday for his fierce criticism of Michael Flynn, President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser, for lying to FBI agents.

For the last three months of 2017, the most recent numbers, the government conducted about 6,000 credible fear interviews monthly.

The vast majority passed those interviews, allowing them to make their case for asylum in front of a US immigration judge.