Supreme Court takes up First Amendment challenge to federal ban on encouraging illegal immigration
There is some Friday afternoon immigration news from the Supreme Court.
Amy Howe reports (here and here) writes that
“The Supreme Court [this afternoon] agreed to hear four new cases, including a First Amendment challenge to a federal law that prohibits encouraging illegal immigration. . . . .
In United States v. Hansen, the justices agreed to review the constitutionality of 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(1)(B)(i), a federal law that makes it a crime, punishable by up to 10 years in prison, to encourage or cause unauthorized immigrants to enter or reside in the United States.
Three years ago, the court agreed to take up this question in another case, United States v. Sineneng-Smith, but it did not resolve it. Instead, a unanimous court ruled that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit had improperly injected the issue into the case.
The question returns to the court in the case of Helaman Hansen, who was convicted under Section 1324(a)(1)(B)(i) for running a program that, in exchange for fees of up to $10,000, promised to help adult unauthorized immigrants become U.S. citizens through adoption. On appeal, he argued – and a panel of the 9th Circuit agreed – that the statute violates the First Amendment because it is so broad that it would also apply to speech protected by the Constitution – for example, a statement that merely encourages someone to stay in the United States. After the 9th Circuit declined to rehear the case, the federal government came to the Supreme Court, which agreed on Friday to weigh in.”
KJ