"Even The Good Hombres Are Not Safe": Federal Judge Criticizes Trump's Immigration Policies
A federal judge in California blasted President Trump's immigration reforms as cruel and unfair Tuesday, stating that "even the good hombres are not safe."
Judge Stephen Reinhardt of the Ninth District Court of Appeals, a President Jimmy Carter-appointee and noted for his very liberal rulings, reluctantly sided in favor of the federal government in the deportation case of 41-year-old Mexican-born Magana Ortiz. Ortiz, a coffee grower and business owner in Hawaii, had been living and working towards citizenship in the United States since age 14. That is, until his 2014 stay of deportation was removed when President Trump took office.
Although concurring with the letter of the law to reject his appeal and deport Ortiz, Reinhardt had reservations about policies that will deport a decent man with a family that he provides for. Ortiz is being forced to leave behind a wife and three children that are all American citizens, and will be barred from entering the United States for 10 years.
“I concur as a judge, but as a citizen I do not,” Judge Reinhardt later wrote in a concurring opinion statement to the order rejecting Ortiz’s appeal.
This case fits into an all-too familiar pattern surround immigration and deportation rulings in subsequent months. This comes in the midst of Trump's immigration officials rolling back "catch and release" regulations that allow detained undocumented individuals to leave detention centers while awaiting court hearings. About 27% of people with immigration cases were detained under Obama compared to President Trump’s 61 percent, with many of them held in detention facilities operated by private companies.
Subscribe to Latin Post!
Sign up for our free newsletter for the Latest coverage!