Supreme Court lets officers detain returning green card holders on criminal allegations
The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 on June 23 that immigration officers may place lawful permanent residents on immigration parole based on criminal allegations alone, without first proving the conduct occurred. The case involved Muk Choi Lau, a green card holder detained on returning from China in 2012 after being accused — but never convicted — of selling counterfeit clothing.
Writing for the majority, Justice Clarence Thomas said border officers “did not have the burden to establish by clear and convincing evidence” that Lau had committed a crime involving moral turpitude. In dissent, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson said the Court had handed the government “a massive blank check” and warned the decision erodes due process protections for people with legal status.
The practical consequence is that returning permanent residents can be detained and processed for removal on the strength of an accusation, shifting the evidentiary burden away from the government at the border. The ruling expands the discretion immigration officers hold over a class of immigrants who had generally been treated as having stronger procedural rights than other non-citizens.