Supreme Court Upholds 'Metering' Policy for Asylum Seekers at U.S.-Mexico Border
The U.S. Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision in Mullin v. Al Otro Lado, has ruled that an alien standing in Mexico does not 'arrive in the United States' by merely attempting to enter the country. The Court determined that an alien 'arrives in the United States' only upon physically crossing the border. This interpretation means that the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) does not grant individuals in Mexico the right to apply for asylum nor does it require an immigration officer to inspect them. The case originated from a 2017 class-action lawsuit against U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) by asylum seekers and the immigration-advocacy organization Al Otro Lado. They argued that CBP's 'metering' policy, which limited the number of asylum seekers processed daily at U.S.-Mexico border ports of entry, unlawfully withheld inspection and asylum processing. The metering policy was implemented in November 2016 due to a surge in asylum seekers exceeding processing capacity and continued through subsequent p...
