A federal appeals court in Washington, D.C. has ordered the Biden administration to stop its enforcement of Title 42, a public health policy, for asylum-seeking families who may face persecution and toruture. Despite the ruling, the Biden administration is still able to use Title 42 to expel asylum seekers without due process. The judge panel questioned whether the policy was still needed due loosening COVID-19 precautions.
The D.C. circuit court called Title 42 “a relic from an era with no vaccines, scarce testing, few therapeutics, and little certainty.”
Also, a Texas-based judge ruled that children can not be exempt from Title 42. Thousands of children are encountered at the border each month which means that they will also be liable for expulsion.
If the Biden administration follows the D.C. circuit court order, that would mean that families would have to be interviewed before being expelled. This process would take over a week which would lead to considerations such as housing.
Some argue that the Biden Administration should abandon completely its use of Title 42 but that would likely end with many lawsuits against the administration.
Concerns about the contradiction between loosening COVID-19 restrictions and the continuation of the public health order (Title 42) continues to grow.
“As pandemic restrictions loosen, the Biden administrati n must immediately work with the Department of Homeland Security and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to address the Title 42 policy that has been used to turn away countless families to countries where they suffer persecution or torture," said Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.) in an article with The Hill.