Connecticut’s immigration attorneys surprised, delighted by DACA decision

There was surprise and delight coming from immigration lawyers’ offices in Connecticut Thursday after the Supreme Court ruled rejected President Donald Trump’s effort to end legal protections for 650,000 young immigrants.

News 12 Staff

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Jun 18, 2020, 6:52 PM

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Updated 1,849 days ago

There was surprise and delight coming from immigration lawyers’ offices in Connecticut Thursday after the Supreme Court ruled rejected President Donald Trump’s effort to end legal protections for 650,000 young immigrants.

For now, the young immigrants retain their protection from deportation and their authorization to work in the United States.

MORE: Connecticut political figures condemn efforts of Trump to end DACA

The 5-4 outcome, in which Chief Justice John Roberts and the four liberal justices were in the majority, seems certain to elevate the issue in Trump's campaign, given the anti-immigrant rhetoric of his first presidential run in 2016 and immigration restrictions his administration has imposed since then.

The justices rejected administration arguments that the 8-year-old Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program is illegal and that courts have no role to play in reviewing the decision to end DACA. The program covers people who have been in the United States since they were children and are in the country illegally. In some cases, they have no memory of any home other than the U.S.

Lucas Codognolla, of Bridgeport, is originally from Brazil and was undocumented when he came to the U.S. at 9 years old. Until Thursday's decision, he was living in limbo.

"You can't plan for the future," he told News 12. "Today I'm celebrating with caution."

The decision may not be the end of the road. Immigration attorney Alex Meyerovich says it was a procedural ruling – meaning the Trump administration can try again to end DACA. He says “the Supreme Court effectively left the question open whether DACA can be terminated at all.”

“Essentially, the [Department of Homeland Security] did not follow its procedures and if they do it the right way, even if the case is litigated again, DACA might be dismantled,” says Meyerovich.

Meyerovich is still telling his clients to get their DACA renewal applications in the pipeline as soon as possible.

AP Wire Services were used in this report.