The Supreme Court’s conservative majority gave Donald Trump’s administration a massive boost to support the president’s increasing threats to legal immigration by making it easier for border officers to challenge whether green card holders can return to the country.
Tuesday’s 6-3 decision from Justice Clarence Thomas gives the government greater flexibility to treat returning green card holders as “applicants for admission” — and potentially vulnerable for detention and removal — based on unproven criminal allegations, even if key evidence develops after they’ve returned. Border officers do not need “clear and convincing evidence” that a lawful permanent resident in the U.S. has committed a serious crime before changing their status, according to the nation’s high court.
