On Tuesday, those eligible for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) – the Obama-enacted program that protects young undocumented immigrants from deportation – received a glimmer of hope. A DC judge ruled today that the Trump Administration’s decision to end the program was “arbitrary and capricious because the Department failed adequately to explain its conclusion that the program was unlawful.” Judge John D. Bates stayed his decision for 90 days.
The administration announced the end of the program in September. And though the government officially rescinded it in March, court rulings have kept DACA alive. Bates is the third federal judge to reject the Administration’s reasoning for ending the program, according to The New York Times. If Trump’s team doesn’t provide a satisfactory explanation, it will have to “accept and process new as well as renewal applications.”
While roughly three months stand in the way, this is welcome news to the immigrant community. Up until this decision, a certain group of people couldn’t apply for DACA.