The Supreme Court told the Trump administration it will not hear the government's appeal at this time of an injunction keeping the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) partially in place.
The injunction ordered the administration to allow DACA renewals to continue, and, in the absence of a contrary court ruling, that injunction will remain in place even after the March 5 deadline when DACA is supposed to end under the Trump administration order winding down DACA.
The Monday decision of the justices does not mean the Supreme Court will never hear the case. The Justice Department had asked the court to hear its appeal of the injunction before the appeals court had weighed in on the matter, but the justices declined to do so on Monday — noting that they "assumed that the Court of Appeals will proceed expeditiously to decide this case."
The move is a victory for DACA's supporters, as it — at least for now — likely will keep the injunction in place — meaning DACA renewal applications will continue to be accepted and processed — while the appeal is heard.
Although the Justice Department had urged the Supreme Court to take the case due to the importance of the matter, it also was seen as an attempt to avoid having the case heard in the US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit — which has been skeptical of several Trump administration actions.
Now, the government's appeal of the injunction will proceed at the 9th Circuit. If the 9th Circuit upholds the injunction, can then return to the Supreme Court and seek Supreme Court review again.
"While we were hopeful for a different outcome, the Supreme Court very rarely grants certiorari before judgment, though in our view it was warranted for the extraordinary injunction requiring the Department of Homeland Security to maintain DACA. We will continue to defend DHS’ lawful authority to wind down DACA in an orderly manner," Justice Department spokesperson Devin O'Malley said of the court's decision to decline taking the case at this time.
The Supreme Court's brief order:
