Federal judge blocks Trump administration fines of up to $1.8M for migrants

By Fox News · Fox News

A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration's attempts to fine migrants up to $1.8 million for failing to leave the country after receiving final deportation orders. U.S. District Judge George O'Toole in Boston issued the ruling on Monday in response to a class-action lawsuit filed last year by two of the thousands of migrants who have received civil penalties from the Department of Homeland Security . The judge granted preliminary relief to the plaintiffs, finding that the administration's process for imposing the fines violated federal law, and that migrants in the "economically precarious position" of addressing the fines could be pushed into "insolvency." "The plaintiffs live in an economically precarious position even without the imposition of the government’s exorbitant fines," he wrote. DHS ISSUES $84B IN FINES TO ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS UNDER TRUMP ADMINISTRATION "They face the possible garnishment of their already modest wages, loss of any vehicles and homes, federal collections lawsuits and other adverse collateral consequences," O’Toole added. "If they were ultimately successful in this suit, there is no indication that simply requiring the government to vacate their fine notices would –– or even could, at that point –– make the plaintiffs whole or return the circumstances to the status quo." O’Toole, an appointee of former President Bill Clinton, described how the plaintiffs worked for low salaries and had come to the U.S. to escape political violence. "Nancy M. was fined over $1.8 million," O’Toole wrote, referring to one of the plaintiffs. "She is a laborer working over 60 hours a week with two jobs, and she reports feeling serious anxiety affecting her ability to sleep, eat and live a normal life." The judge also found that the administration's fine notices violated the Administrative Procedure Act by failing to provide specific allegations explaining why an individual's conduct warranted a penalty. Fox News Digital reached out to DHS for comment…