If TPS for Haiti expires at 11:59 p.m. Tuesday, thousands of Haitians who live in the local community would suddenly lose their legal right to work and live in the United States.
But the federal lawsuit before District Court Judge Ana Reyes could prevent that from happening.
“If we win today, if Judge Reyes decides in the plaintiffs’ favor today, then ICE raids should not start,” said Geoff Pipoly, lead counsel in the Washington case (Miot v. Trump) who was in Springfield on Monday at a pro-immigration event ahead of a possible immigration enforcement surge in the city.
Pipoly said the federal government decided to terminate Haiti’s TPS even before the current administration took power. He said DHS is supposed to review and evaluate TPS countries’ conditions to determine if their citizens can return safely to their homelands.
But Pipoly said the government did not do such a review, even though these are life and death stakes.
“They made a decision to terminate TPS for Haiti and then fit the facts on the ground to that conclusion they had already reached,” he said. “That’s what temporary means — until it is safe to go back. It’s why some TPS designations have lasted a year, and others have lasted 15.″
The lawsuit states that the only circumstances under which a TPS designation can be lawfully terminated is if the DHS Secretary determines that a foreign state no longer meets the conditions for designation after a mandated periodic review.
“A decision to terminate TPS must flow from the evidence the Secretary considers; a termination decision that is ‘preordained’ or ‘pretextual’ violates the statute,” says the second amended class action complaint that was filed in December.
The complaint says no part of Haiti is safe and gangs control 90% of Haiti’s capital city, Port-au-Prince.
The lawsuit says the violence in Haiti has left 1 million people homeless. The Caribbean country has about 12 million people, or roughly the same number of residents as the state of Ohio.
Pipoly attended a community gathering on Monday morning at St. John Missionary Baptist Church that drew about 1,200 people. The crowd size was so large that the fire marshal required 300 people to leave the church.
Judge Reyes has indicated that she will issue a ruling before the Haiti TPS expires Tuesday night. Both sides, the plaintiffs and defendants, have indicated they expect to appeal the district court’s decision if it goes against them.
Secretary Noem has said that cancelling TPS for Haiti is necessary because it is against “the national interest” to permit Haitian nationals to remain temporarily in the United States.
Plaintiff Vilbrun Dorsainvil was a physician in Haiti who relocated to Springfield. Vilbrun Dorsainvil, who has worked as a registered nurse at a local hospital, supports his 4-year-old daughter and her mother back in Haiti, as well as his mother, his godson and other family members. His brother, Viles Dorsainvil, is one of the plaintiffs in a separate case in federal court in California that also challenges DHS’ decision to cancel TPS for Haiti and Venezuela.
In the California case, a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the termination to go into effect for Venezuela, even though the case remains active and undecided.
DIG INTO OUR HAITIAN COVERAGE
Clark County Sheriff’s Office to ‘maintain the peace’ as TPS ends, will not enforce immigration laws
WATCH: Haitian restaurant in Springfield struggles as federal protections near expiration
• What’s coming?: After some initially warned of an anticipated 30-day ICE surge following the end of TPS, school and state officials stressed they have had no direct communication with the feds about potential enforcement actions, but they are preparing for the possibility.
• A community in fear: Reporter Cornelius Frolik traveled the streets of Springfield with a translator and spoke to more than a dozen Haitian people living and working in the Springfield area. Most of them expressed feelings of uncertainty and dread about the TPS cancellation.
• Lawsuits: Area Haitians on TPS are pinning their hopes on a couple of lawsuits that challenge the legality of the federal government’s decision to cancel the TPS designation for Haiti. Here are the details on those lawsuits, including one involving a Springfield man.
• Keket: Our reporters sat down with a local restaurant owner concerned that immigration enforcement fears could close her business. Her compelling personal story is captured in writing and video here.
• Residents prepare: More than 80 people took part in an educational event at Zion Hill Baptist Church in Springfield Thursday evening, learning about their rights and those of their neighbors regardless of immigration status.
• Law enforcement: Local law enforcement officials say they will work to “maintain the peace” amid any ICE surge, but they won’t enforce federal immigration law.
• City leaders: The Springfield City Commission unanimously passed a resolution asking federal immigration agents to follow local rules when conducting enforcement activities.
• Politicians react: Our statehouse reporter Avery Kreemer reached out to politicians who represent Dayton and Springfield at the state and national level about their views on ending TPS and an ICE surge. Read that story here.
• How we got here: We have been reporting on the growth of the Haitian population in Springfield and its effect on the community for years. This story from the archive explains why so many Haitians relocated to Springfield, Ohio.
• Community survey: In addition to reporters interviewing residents on the street, we created an online survey to gather community perspective. I’ll have a summary of responses in an upcoming story.
• Dayton action: Several Dayton restaurants and other businesses closed Friday and hundreds of people gathered in front of U.S. Rep. Mike Turner’s Dayton office as part of the nationwide protest of ICE operations.
• VIDEO: What to know about Haitian immigration in Springfield
• VIDEO: Haitian immigrant community grows in Springfield
About the Author
