Florida cannot enforce a new law that would bar illegal immigrants from entering the Sunshine State, the Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday.
“The application for stay presented to Justice Thomas and by him referred to the Court is denied,” read the order rejecting Florida’s emergency appeal to the high court.
No justices dissented, and the court did not provide a written opinion explaining the order.
US District Judge Kathleen Williams, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, blocked Florida from enforcing the new law in April.
The Supreme Court order will leave Williams’ pause in place while the legal challenge over the law plays out.
The law makes it a misdemeanor offense to enter Florida as an illegal immigrant.
It was signed into law by Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in February as part of sweeping legislation in support of President Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration.
State Attorney General James Uthmeier argued that the law was necessary to protect Floridians from “the deluge of illegal immigration,” in his appeal to the Supreme Court.
“If a State’s police powers are powers at all, they allow a State to criminalize harms destructive to the community,” he wrote, according to the Tallahassee Democrat.
Seventeen states and the Trump administration filed briefs in the Supreme Court backing Florida’s appeal.
Immigrants rights groups sued to block the law on behalf of two unnamed, Florida-based migrants living in the country illegally, arguing that the penalties were unconstitutional because immigration enforcement is a federal matter.
“This denial reaffirms a bedrock principle that dates back 150 years: States may not regulate immigration,” said Cody Wofsy, Deputy Director of the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project. “It is past time for states to get the message.”
“This ruling affirms what the Constitution demands — that immigration enforcement is a federal matter and that no one should be stripped of their liberty without due process,” Bacardi Jackson, executive director of the ACLU of Florida, said in a statement.“Florida’s attempt to bypass federal authority and weaponize local law enforcement to police immigration status was not only unlawful, but it also put thousands of people at risk of unjust detention, separation, and abuse.”
“We are grateful the Court upheld the block, and we remain committed to defending the rights and humanity of all Floridians.”
A spokesperson for the Florida attorney general’s office indicated that he expects the state will defeat the lawsuit.
“The law passed by the Legislature and signed by Governor DeSantis is important to Florida’s future, and we believe it will prevail on the merits,” Jae Williams, the attorney general’s press secretary, said in a statement.
