Texas migrant law in limbo after Supreme Court OK

Migrants try to cross into Eagle Pass, Texas

"We have no training whatsoever to determine whether an individual is here in this country, legally"

(Image credit: John Moore / Getty Images)

What happened

The Supreme Court voted 6-3 Tuesday to allow Texas to enforce a controversial law that lets state authorities arrest and deport suspected undocumented migrants. A divided three-judge panel at the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals late Tuesday blocked the law, overriding a different three-judge panel that had green-lighted it after a federal judge in Texas ruled it unconstitutional.

Who said what

Letting the law take effect would "upend the longstanding federal-state balance of power and sow chaos" in immigration enforcement, Justice Sonia Sotomayor said in her dissent. Justice Amy Coney Barrett said the Supreme Court was not the proper venue to review the 5th Circuit's possible procedural abuses. "Mexico will not accept, under any circumstances, repatriations by the state of Texas," Mexico's foreign ministry said.

The commentary

In the few hours the law, SB4, was not enjoined, "some sheriffs were ready to relish an unprecedented state expansion into border enforcement, while others were reluctant," The Washington Post said. "A lot of the local police chiefs here, we don't believe it will survive a constitutional challenge," said Hidalgo County Sheriff Eddie Guerra. And "we have no training whatsoever to determine whether an individual is here in this country, legally."

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What next?

The 5th Circuit panel will hear arguments Wednesday on whether the law should remain suspended while the Justice Department fights to have it struck down. The merits of the case will be litigated in April.

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.