In a new ruling released on Friday, a federal judge held that the Trump administration agency that oversees lawful U.S. immigration must stop enforcing several policies that paused adjudication of certain immigration-benefit applications.
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1*On June 5, 2026, a federal judge in Rhode Island struck down four USCIS policies that paused or delayed certain immigration benefit decisions for applicants from 39 travel ban countries.
✅ The court declared four USCIS policies unlawful and vacated them: pic.twitter.com/KrUIxLYRVn
— AK Poku Law, PLLC (@greencard1awyer) June 5, 2026
The decision came Friday morning in a voluminous order written by Rhode Island’s U.S. District Court Chief Judge, John J. McConnell Jr.:
In a searing 135-page opinion, Judge John J. McConnell Jr. wrote that actions to lock eligible asylum seekers out of the immigration system and deny others temporary work permits had made it functionally impossible for a broad swath of people to remain in the country. He said the measures were improperly fueled by “anti-immigration sentiments” and contrary to immigration laws.
The policies, enacted by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, included a global hold on asylum applications filed with the agency. U.S.C.I.S. also paused decisions on immigration applications filed by people from the 39 countries, largely in Africa and the Middle East, that are subject to the president’s travel ban, halting their ability to obtain green cards and other benefits.
The sweeping measures also touched lawful permanent residents who have lived in the country legally for years but have been effectively unable to be approved for citizenship because decisions on naturalization applications had ground to a halt.
McConnell wrote that:
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“The rule of law has to apply to everyone equally and, as evident here, U.S.C.I.S. has neither ‘followed the law’ nor ‘done things the right way.’”
The opinion continued:
“Over six months later, many of those individuals remain without work, without legal status and without any meaningful ability to plan for their futures,” Judge McConnell wrote.
Judge McConnell…wrote that the various holds violated the immigration laws governing the responsibilities of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and that the agency had routinely applied the law unequally under the policies. He noted in particular strident claims President Trump made last year after the shooting in Washington, blaming immigrants for a range of social problems, including housing shortages and “urban decay.”
The judge wrote that the burden of the changes fell hardest on people who had followed all the procedures demanded of them, rather than immigrants who entered the country illegally, whom the Trump administration routinely vilifies.
“The court is reminded of a line often repeated in discussions around immigration policy: If people wish to immigrate to the United States, they ought to ‘follow the law’ and ‘do things the right way,’” he wrote. “This case serves as a perfect example of immigrants doing just that.”
Judge McConnell was nominated for the federal bench seat in 2011 by former President Barack Obama.
The suit was filed by a group of nonprofit organizations, led by two Providence-based nonprofits, Dorcas International Institute of Rhode Island and Refugee Dream Center, according to local publication, The Rhode Island Current. The lawsuit was also joined by union groups that support immigrants’ claims.
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The lawsuit against U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services stemmed from the order by President Donald Trump to pause or delay adjudications, particularly for applicants from designated countries, and impose re-review procedures for some refugees, after two National Guardsmen were shot, one fatally, in Washington, D.C., by an Afghan terror suspect, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, who was living in the United States on an expired 2021 temporary visa.
Pres. Trump Honors WV National Guardsman Ambushed in D.C. Terror Attack With Purple Heart
In reaction to the ruling, in an emailed statement to The Current in the story linked above, James Percival, legal counsel for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the umbrella agency for USCIS, said:
“The Left has been running the same gambit with so called ‘animus’ claims since 2017. It is sabotage dressed in legal clothing. It goes like this: (1) the admin is racist, (2) therefore a policy I don’t like is motivated by race, (3) therefore it is invalid. They have used it on virtually every Trump era Department of Homeland Security policy.”
As we wrote last Friday afternoon, two other decisions, which have had major ramifications for two of President Trump’s priorities – the DOJ Anti-Weaponization Fund and the renovation/renaming of the Trump Kennedy Center – were released by district judges.
Read More: Fuggedaboutit: Trump Reacts After Federal Judge Nixes Name Change, Closing Kennedy Center for Reno
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Judge Places Temp. Pause on Disbursement of DOJ Anti-Weaponization Fund
This may also be worth noting as a side point, readers: Judge John J. McConnell Jr. reportedly has deep pockets when it comes to Democrats running for elected office. A report cited by The Daily Signal on Friday claimed that in 2025, data shed light on his generous donations:
In total, he contributed $190,000 to members of Congress and at least $200,000 combined to the Democrat Party at the national and state level, CQ Roll Call reported.
Judge McConnell also allegedly sided with blue-state Dems in several cases about Trump administration spending cuts that sought to cut waste, fraud, and abuse. The judge’s wife also contributed $250,000 to Democrats, according to the Daily Signal story linked above.
You can read the full opinion from Friday here.
While it has not officially been announced yet, the Trump administration will likely appeal. Stay tuned.
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