Block on SB4 immigration law extended in Texas: What will happen now?

Senate Bill 4, passed by the Texas legislature in 2017, would allow law enforcement authorities in the state to arrest and detain migrants attempting to cross the US-Mexico border. Since its passage, the law has been blocked by the courts, with Supreme Court Samuel Alito imposing another extension to the implementation of SB4 through Monday, March 18.

What is SB4?

Justice Alito, one of the most conservative members of the Supreme Court, extended an injunction from a lower court, specifically the ruling issued by U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas Judge David Ezra. In the ruling, Judge Ezra rejected arguments from officials in Texas that the law was needed to protect the state as it faced an ‘invasion’ of migrants. Additionally, he wrote that there were severe constitutional questions in the case, saying that the law violated the country’s founding document, which the White House has argued.

Previously, the law was set to take effect on Tuesday, 6 February, and would have imposed a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years on those accused of smuggling undocumented immigrants. If the court deems the offense as punishment for a first-degree felony, the minimum prison sentence is 15 years or more if another applicable provision of law applies. Those who hide immigrants in safe houses, popularly known as “stash houses,” will face a mandatory minimum sentence of five years behind bars. Punishments would be increased to that prescribed for the next higher offense category if it was committed in an area under a declared state of disaster. The measure also expands criminal sanctions for other crimes related to victims that occurred during the commission of smuggling.

However, the sentence could drop to five years if those considered smugglers were transp[ortin close family members, what is legally referred to as “third degree of consanguinity” or “third degree of affinity.” Part of the reason Judge Ezra made the injunction is because the definition of smuggling is quite broad in Texas, and merely driving a family member to the doctor could result in a 10-year jail term.

The Supreme Court’s extension of the injunction implies that justices are still considering the legality of the law and that there is still a chance that it could be implemented as soon as late May.