The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the Trump administration can deny asylum to migrants who approach U.S. ports of entry, a decision that effectively allows border agents to block individuals fleeing violence and persecution from seeking refuge.
The 6-3 ruling, authored by Justice Samuel Alito, found that individuals standing in Mexico have not yet "arrived in the United States" for the purposes of asylum claims if they fail to physically enter the country. The decision reverses a lower court's finding that the policy likely violated federal law and international treaties.
"We hold that an alien who is standing in Mexico does not 'arrive in the United States' by attempting, and failing, to set foot in the country," Alito wrote for the majority. "An alien 'arrives in the United States' only when he crosses the border."
Federal law stipulates that the opportunity to apply for asylum must be granted to those who "arrive in" the country. The policy, which was voluntarily rescinded in 2021 amid a surge in migrant crossings, could be reinstated by the government. Former President Trump has utilized alternate legal authorities for his current border enforcement measures.
Alito used analogies to explain the majority's reasoning: "A running back does not arrive in the end zone when he reaches the 1-yard line. A guest does not arrive in a house when he knocks on the front door. An army does not arrive in a city by encamping outside its walls. And a letter does not arrive in a mailbox while it remains in the mail carrier's hand just inches away."
In a dissent, Justice Sonia Sotomayor, joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, argued that the majority distorted legal procedures designed to protect vulnerable individuals. She stated that the court's decision permits the executive branch to circumvent these procedures by having immigration officers physically prevent noncitizens from entering U.S. soil, even at the threshold of a designated port of entry.
Sotomayor invoked the historical precedent of the MS St. Louis, a ship carrying European Jewish refugees in the 1930s that was turned away by the U.S., leading to the deaths of most passengers during the Holocaust. She noted that the 1980 Refugee Act was enacted partly to prevent such outcomes.
"The Court today holds that the Executive Branch may circumvent all these mandatory procedures by having U.S. immigration officers stand at the border and physically block noncitizens from setting a foot onto U.S. soil," Sotomayor wrote. "Even if the asylum seeker is certain to be persecuted, or killed, if she is turned away."
She predicted dire consequences: "The consequences of today's decision are predictable. More people will die. More people will attempt to cross the border illegally, and some will make it while others will not. More people will turn back and be subjected to violence because of something they cannot or should not have to change about themselves, such as their race, religious, nationality, or political opinion."