Sotomayor, Gorsuch condemn immigrant’s prosecution, citing ‘constitutional absurdity’
The justices said the government’s theory could allow repeated charges for a single continuous presence in the country, raising broad Fifth Amendment concerns.
- On Tuesday, the Supreme Court declined to hear the case of Jesus Herrera-Salazar, though Associate Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Justice Neil Gorsuch issued a statement denouncing "constitutional absurdity" in the government's prosecution.
- Herrera-Salazar was convicted in 2020 for being "found in" the United States after a prior removal, then arrested again in Oklahoma while serving supervised release that legally barred him from leaving the district.
- Sotomayor and Gorsuch argued the second prosecution created a "Hobson's choice," where the government punished him for being in the country while simultaneously ordering him to remain in Oklahoma, violating Fifth Amendment double jeopardy protections.
- While the justices concurred with denying review because Herrera-Salazar has already been removed from the country, they urged lower courts to "avoid the constitutional absurdity" of such prosecutions in future cases.
- The justices warned that treating continuous presence as separate offenses could allow "potentially limitless" charges, addressing "serious constitutional problems" in federal immigration prosecutions that demand constitutional recalibration.
8 Articles
8 Articles
Surprising Supreme Court duo blasts Trump's admin's 'absurd' immigration case
Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch, appointed by President Donald Trump, joined Justice Sonia Sotomayor on Tuesday to flag “serious constitutional problems” in the government’s prosecution of a man twice charged with the same immigration offense.The unlikely alliance criticized the reasoning behind the case even as both agreed the Supreme Court should decline to hear it, The Washington Sun reported.“Absurd as that seems, it is a logical outgrowt…
Sotomayor, Gorsuch call out 'constitutional absurdity' in immigrant case
Oct. 13 (UPI) — U.S. Supreme Court Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Neil Gorsuch together called out “constitutional absurdity” in the case of a Mexican immigrant charged twice with being “found in” the United States — the second time after he was specifically told to remain in the country. While the high court did not take […] The post Sotomayor, Gorsuch call out ‘constitutional absurdity’ in immigrant case first appeared on Gephardt Daily.
Sotomayor, Gorsuch Criticize ‘Serious Constitutional Problems’ in Denied Immigration Case
Supreme Court Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Neil Gorsuch encouraged the justice system to “give the Double Jeopardy Clause its full weight and meaning” if courts are tasked with reviewing cases similar to Jesus Herrera-Salazar’s. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP)Supreme Court Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Neil Gorsuch joined forces to issue a statement highlighting the “constitutional absurdity” of an immigration case that the high court declined to take u…
Opposing Supreme Court justices join forces to call out 'absurdity'
Supreme Court Justices Sonia Sotomayor, a liberal, and Neil Gorsuch, a conservative, united Tuesday to denounce what they called “serious constitutional problems” in the government’s prosecution of a Mexican national for illegally reentering the United States. It’s the latest example of the unlikely pairing teaming up as allies despite being on opposing sides. Their synonymous viewpoints emerged when both agreed it was difficult to see how Jesus…
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