The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday took up a new dispute over the detention of immigrants in a case involving whether people convicted of criminal offenses who are subject to deportation can remain free while their cases proceed.
The justices will hear an appeal by President Donald Trump's administration of a lower court ruling blocking the government from detaining immigrants convicted of crimes any time after they leave prison, sometimes years later. The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in 2016 that the government could detain such immigrants only immediately after they finish their prison term.
The high court agreed to take up the case after ruling in another immigrant detention case on Feb. 27. The justices in that case curbed the ability of immigrants held in long-term detention during deportation proceedings to argue for their release, overturning another 9th Circuit ruling.
