The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld a lower court's injunction preventing Florida from enforcing a law that criminalizes undocumented immigrants for entering the state.
The decision preserves a ruling issued by U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams (a Barack Obama appointee), who found that Florida’s statute likely conflicts with the federal government's exclusive authority over immigration policy.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier (R) and state officials had filed an emergency request on June 17, asking the Supreme Court to lift the injunction and permit enforcement of the law while appeals continued, according to the Associated Press.
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Williams had previously ruled the legislation was likely unconstitutional, citing federal preemption, and held Uthmeier in contempt for encouraging local law enforcement to proceed despite the injunction.
The law, passed during a special session in February and signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), had designated illegal entry by undocumented individuals as a criminal offense under state jurisdiction.
It was the seventh such state-level immigration law introduced in recent years.
Supporters included America First Legal — a conservative legal organization affiliated with President Donald Trump's senior advisor Stephen Miller — and attorneys general from 17 additional Republican-led states, who submitted amicus briefs backing Florida’s position.
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Opponents, including immigrant rights groups and the ACLU, challenged the measure under the Supremacy Clause.
With the injunction intact, the law remains unenforceable as lower-court litigation progresses.
The Supreme Court's refusal to intervene keeps the status quo in place and prolongs the legal examination of Florida's attempt to regulate immigration at the state level.
Reacting to the decision, legal experts welcomed the development.
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In a post on the social platform X, Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow at the American Immigration Council reacted to the decision and wrote: "HUGE. And also unquestionably the correct response."