Lawsuit challenges up to $1.8 million in fines imposed on immigrants by Trump admin

A lawsuit was filed Thursday against the federal government on behalf of immigrants who face fines of up to $1.8 million each for remaining in the United States illegally.

More than 21,500 immigrants were fined $998 a day, whose lawyers said they were trying to comply with federal immigration laws. The penalties were imposed to encourage immigrants to leave the country.

The attorneys argued that the penalties were unconstitutional, saying their clients faced “devastating civil penalties” that were “grossly disproportionate to the seriousness” of the immigration violations.

The lawsuit, filed on behalf of two immigrant women in Massachusetts, seeks class-action status to represent people facing fines that attorneys say total more than $6 billion under President Donald Trump’s mass deportation policies.

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“The people we serve are doing exactly what the law requires; seeking legal assistance through immigration courts and immigration authorities,” Hasan Shafiqullah, supervising attorney for the Legal Aid Society, one of the groups representing immigrants, said in a press release. he said. “In return, the government threatens to confiscate their wages, their cars, even their homes.”

One of the two plaintiffs, a Florida resident identified only as Nancy M. in the complaint, was ordered to leave the U.S. to protect herself from punishment, but she also had a “supervision order” and was meeting with immigration officials annually as she tried to become a legal permanent resident.

Despite this, it received a bill of nearly $1.8 million earlier this year, a figure that appears to have been achieved through fines of $998 per day over the last five years.

The lawyers said their clients faced “devastating fines” that were “grossly disproportionate to the severity” of the immigration violations. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

The Department of Homeland Security argued that the case was “yet another attempt to override federal immigration law through activist litigation.”

“The plaintiffs in this case are here illegally and are suing to remain in the country illegally without consequences or penalties, contrary to decades of federal law,” DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement. he said.

Shortly after Trump returned to the White House in January, his administration announced a series of moves to encourage immigrants to leave the country, including DHS’s announcement in February that illegal immigrants could face “significant financial penalties” if they did not self-deport.

DHS WILL APPLY A 1,000 DOLLAR FEE TO IMMIGRANTS GIVEN HUMANITARIAN CONDITIONAL VIOLATIONS

The Department of Homeland Security argued that the case was “yet another attempt to override federal immigration law through activist litigation.” (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

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Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem “have a clear message for those in our country illegally: leave now,” McLaughlin said in February.

“The Trump administration will enforce all of our immigration laws; we will not choose which laws to enforce,” he added at the time.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.