Federal appeals court rules against Trump administration on DACA rescission News
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Federal appeals court rules against Trump administration on DACA rescission

The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled Friday that the decision to rescind DACA (deferred action for childhood arrivals) was “arbitrary and capricious”.

The suit was filed by a number of individuals and organizations to protect the rights of children who were previously granted deferred action under the DACA policy. Under the policy, individuals who came to the US as children and submitted various personal and biometric data to the Department of Homeland Security would be allowed to apply for renewable two-year terms of deferred action to stay in the country. The program was started under the Obama administration and allowed for the entry and stay of some 800,000 individuals. The Trump administration rescinded the program after taking office in 2017, leading to lawsuits filed across the country including this one.

The Fourth Circuit reviewed the district court decision and ultimately reversed. The appeals court found that while the decision did not require notice-and-comment, it was still subject to judicial review as a form of agency action. The court ultimately found that the change in policy violated the “arbitrary and capricious” test because the agency did not adequately explain the reversal of policy. The agency failed to demonstrate the laws the policy violated or any substantial flaws in the data or decision-making of the original policy. The court reversed for further proceedings but specifically did not address specific claimed Constitutional violations.

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