Federal appeals court deals blow to Trump deportation agenda

A federal appeals court this week shut down the pathway the Trump administration had been using to deport migrants to third countries, formally ending a stay that had let the practice continue during litigation. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit issued a mandate dissolving the stay, which dated to March 2026, confirming a September 18 judgment against the administration's approach. The ruling affirms a February 2026 order from Judge Brian Murphy of the federal district court in Massachusetts, appointed to the bench by former President Joe Biden, requiring immigration officials to give migrants a genuine opportunity to argue they would be in danger before sending them to countries other than their own. Judges have found repeatedly that the administration failed to properly notify migrants facing such removals, violating their due process rights. Even after the underlying order, immigration authorities this week tried to remove a Peruvian migrant identified only as John Doe to Ghana, contending the First Circuit had not yet formally entered its mandate, according to The American Prospect. Once pressed for clarification, the appeals court issued that mandate on Wednesday, eliminating the legal basis officials had cited to keep the removals going. The Trump administration has relied on sending migrants to third countries in cases where they say returning to their home nation would put them at risk of torture, according to Fox News.

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