Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan on Wednesday denied an emergency appeal by four Mexican nationals facing deportation. The request asked the court to temporarily block their removal so they could file a formal petition for review.Â
Kagan denied the application without comment and did not refer the matter to her colleagues on the court.
The petitioners, Fabian Lagunas Espinoza, Maria Angelica Flores Ulloa and their two sons, were ordered to report to immigration officials on April 17. Their legal team argued they face cartel violence if returned to Mexico.
According to their court filing, the family fled Guerrero, Mexico, in 2021 after being threatened by the Los Rojos cartel. The petition stated that cartel members demanded the family vacate their home within 24 hours or be killed.Â
It also included details of past violence against extended family members, including beatings and threats following refusals to cooperate with the cartel.
The family entered the U.S. unlawfully and sought asylum and an immigration judge denied their claims.Â
San Diego, CA – January 25: A view of the U.S.-Mexico border wall in Imperial Beach, San Diego side Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
That ruling was upheld by the Board of Immigration Appeals in November 2023, and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the decision in February 2025. A temporary stay of removal was lifted on April 7.
The emergency appeal to Justice Kagan argued that the lower courts and immigration authorities failed to consider credible evidence and due process claims.
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Under Supreme Court procedures, each justice handles emergency appeals from a specific circuit. As the justice assigned to the Ninth Circuit, Kagan had the authority to act alone or refer the case to the full court.
WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 17: The U.S. Supreme Court is shown March 17, 2025 in Washington, DC. The Trump administration defied a federal judge’s court order this past weekend in a case related to the deportation of more than 200 alleged Tren de Aragua gang members to El Salvador under the Alien Enemies Act of 1789. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
She denied the application without referring it further.
In their filing, the petitioners’ attorney, LeRoy George Siddell, wrote: “Petitioners face imminent removal and have been directed to report to immigration office on 4/17/2025, despite credible and detailed testimony and documentary evidence showing they are targets of cartel violence due to their family ties and refusal to comply with extortion demands.”
WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 07: United States Supreme Court Associate Justice Elena Kagan poses for an official portrait at the East Conference Room of the Supreme Court building on October 7, 2022, in Washington, DC. The Supreme Court has begun a new term after Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was officially added to the bench in September. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
There was no response from the Department of Justice to the application before Kagan issued her decision.
As of Thursday morning, the petitioners were required to report to U.S. immigration authorities. Their disposition remains to be determined.
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The Department of Justice did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
