Judge keeps CDC eviction moratorium in place but says freeze is illegal

Washington — A federal judge Friday refused landlords' request to put the Biden administration's new eviction moratorium on hold, though she ruled that the freeze is illegal.

U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich said her "hands are tied" by an appellate decision from the last time courts considered the eviction moratorium in the spring. Alabama landlords who are challenging the moratorium, which is set to expire Oct. 3, are likely to appeal her ruling. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently issued a new eviction moratorium that covers the vast majority of the country, replacing a moratorium that the Supreme Court said could not continue.  Friedrich, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump, wrote that the CDC's new temporary ban on evictions is substantially similar to the version she ruled was illegal in May. At the time, Freidrich put her ruling on hold to allow the Biden administration to appeal.