The ACLU of Massachusetts returns to court Friday in their ongoing challenge of President Trump’s travel ban.
Early Sunday morning, the ACLU of Massachusetts won a seven-day restraining order to stop the government from detaining or removing anyone who is otherwise legally authorized to enter the country.
On Wednesday, they filed an amended complaint on behalf of several non-citizens who are in the country legally, and who now fear they won't be able to return if they leave the country.
Now, they're going back to court.
“We think that this order should either be a permanent stay, or a long-term stay, or it should just be struck down on its face," said the group’s executive director, Carol Rose. "Because whether we decide now or decide later, we believe that the executive order is clearly unconstitutional and illegal and needs to be struck down by the courts.”
Rose argues that the executive order violates a range of constitutional provisions, including equal protection, due process, freedom of speech, and the establishment clause, which says the government can’t favor one religion over another.
“So there are many, many ways in which this is unconstitutional and illegal, and one of which should be a basis for striking down the executive order," she said.
The state ACLU has also filed a Freedom of Information Act request to determine how Trump administration officials are interpreting and executing the order. Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey’s office will also be in the courtroom asking the judge to allow the state to join the case against the federal government.
