But the application also requests the court to grant “certiorari before judgment” so as to inform all similar cases, such as the lawsuit Haitian TPS holders filed in the District of Columbia challenging Noem’s decision to end TPS for Haiti.
Secretary Noem insists that federal courts have no authority to review her TPS terminations, and the government has asked the Supreme Court to look at and weigh in on whether the TPS statute bars judicial scrutiny.
The government claims the same arguments and allegations are featured in TPS-related lawsuits filed in federal district courts across the nation, and judges in those “indistinguishable” cases have repeatedly blocked TPS terminations from taking effect.
Appellate courts in some cases sided with the lower courts and agreed that TPS terminations should not take effect while litigation challenging the determinations proceed. In other cases, the appeals courts vacated the district court’s orders, pausing cancellations.
“Given the pattern of lower-court rulings and the division of courts of appeals when considering TPS terminations in the stay posture, this court should grant review and provide guidance to lower courts on pressing and recurring issues at the core of important administration priorities,” says the Trump administration’s request for a stay.
The government’s request is tied to a case in New York federal district court, Doe v. Noem, that challenges the secretary’s decision to revoke TPS for Syria. A New York judge temporarily halted the revocation, and an appeals court denied the Trump administration’s request to let that go into effect.
The Supreme Court on two occasions reversed a California federal district judge’s attempts to postpone the cancellation of TPS for Venezuela in a similar case. Following the court’s orders, a California appellate court recently allowed TPS designations to end for a few other countries as well, while the lawsuits against the federal government over TPS move forward.
The Trump administration claims Noem followed statutory protocol, consulted with the State Department and factored in a variety of considerations before she concluded that Haiti’s and other countries’ TPS designations were no longer appropriate. The government says her decisions should have been final and are not subject to judicial review by statute.
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
In a decision that would impact more than 330,000 Haitian nationals, Noem determined that there are no “extraordinary and temporary conditions” preventing Haitian citizens from returning to their homeland. Haiti’s designation for TPS in 2010 and 2021 were related to extraordinary and temporary conditions stemming first from an earthquake and later from political crisis and violence.
An estimated 10,000 to 15,000 Haitians live in the Springfield area.
Decision still pending in Haiti TPS case
Washington D.C. district court Judge Ana Reyes paused Haiti’s TPS revocation. Reyes said her order preserves the “status quo” as the legal challenge is considered and decided and the Trump administration presented no evidence to make her believe this pause would cause the government “irreparable harm.”
“The court asked the government to identify concrete examples of harm if the termination remains stayed pending litigation,” Reyes wrote. “It could not name one.”
Haitians in Springfield and across the nation are still waiting for a decision from the District of Columbia circuit court of appeals about whether the court will affirm or reverse Judge Reyes’ ruling postponing the Haiti’s TPS elimination.
The Trump administration accused Reyes of substituting her own judgment for Noem’s in assessing the conditions of Haiti. Noem continues to insist that revoking TPS for Haiti is in the national interest.
In an opinion and order filed on Feb 23, Reyes refuted some of the claims the federal government made in court filings that asked a District of Columbia appellate court to lift her pause.
Reyes said the government accused her of demanding that Noem consult “some other (unnamed) ‘appropriate’ agency in addition to the State Department” before she made a determination. Reyes said she did not demand this — the TPS statute that Congress approved has this requirement.
Reyes also said the evidence suggests Noem did not consult with the State Department before she decided to cancel TPS for Haiti.
The State Department currently advises Americans not to travel to Haiti “due to kidnapping, crime, terrorist activity, civil unrest, and limited health care," and on Feb. 18 issued a security alert warning of an increase in kidnappings.
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
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