Saturday, December 14, 2024

Border Crossing Have Dropped Since Title 42 Expired

The first day after Title 42 was lifted, U.S. Customs and Border Protection stopped over 6,200 undocumented migrants from crossing the border on Friday, compared to roughly 11,000 on Tuesday and Wednesday and 10,000 on Thursday.

The Covid-era restrictions that allowed immigration officials to turn away migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border expired at 11:59 p.m. ET on Thursday, ushering in tougher policies for asylum-seekers.

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement that agents were ready to humanely process and remove people who are not legally allowed to be in the United States.

“The border is not open,” he said earlier this week. “People who do not use available lawful pathways to enter the U.S. now face tougher consequences.”

Title 42 was invoked by former President Donald Trump during the coronavirus pandemic, apparently as a way to slow the spread of Covid. Its implementation, however, allowed the Trump administration to expel migrants more quickly without having to consider them for asylum.

The pandemic waned, making the public health order that led to using Title 42 questionable, leading to the U.S. Supreme Court canceling arguments in the case. Since it was lifted, the government reverted to the previous immigration law, which falls under Title 8 of the U.S. Code of federal statutes.

Under Title 8, migrants are assessed penalties they would not face under Title 42. Among them is up to two years in prison if a person re-enters the country undocumented after having been removed or deported. Also, people who are removed from the country will be prohibited from re-entering the country for five years. If caught re-entering they could face felony charges, imprisonment, and longer bans on re-entering the country.

NBC News