ALEXANDRIA, February 3, 2017 – Virginia’s lawsuit against President Donald Trump’s immigration ban will be moving forward after Judge Leonie M. Brinkema granted Virginia’s motion to intervene in the case to challenge the ban. Virginia’s participation in the case expands the scope of affected individuals to also include visa holders as well as lawful permanent residents (green card holders.) The Commonwealth will next argue in favor of a motion for a preliminary injunction during a hearing on Friday, February 10.
While Attorney General Herring continues to pursue the legal case against President Trump’s immigration ban, he is also working to get any affected students from Virginia universities back in the country after the ban prevented them from returning from overseas, including one student who has been stranded in Turkey after not being able to continue on to the United States after leaving her home country.
Attorney General Herring issued the following statement on today’s decision:
“President Trump’s unlawful, unconstitutional, and un-American immigration ban is causing real harm as we speak to Virginia families, students, businesses, and our colleges and universities. I’m really glad the judge recognized the harm and allowed our case to move forward.
“Right now we’re working to make sure we get any affected students back into the country, but one-time fixes don’t address the underlying problems with this ban. I think Judge Brinkema recognized that when she encouraged the federal government to think about a more ‘global’ solution, which is what we’re looking for, as well.
“It was also moving to hear the judge describe the unprecedented outpouring of concern this ban has caused in Virginia and around the country. She also noted, and the federal government’s lawyers conceded, that the implementation  had been chaotic and the revocation of visas had a real impact on people around the world.
“The legal issues in this case are complex, but in many ways this case gets to the heart of who we are as Americans. We are a country and a Commonwealth that are welcoming and open. We do not discriminate based on religion, race, or national origin. That is why we will continue to fight.”
The Commonwealth’s memorandum of law in support of its motion to intervene is available here: http://ag.virginia.gov/files/2017-01-31-Commonwealths-Brief-ISO-Motion-to-Intervene.pdf