New asylum restriction along U.S.-Mexico border challenged in federal court

El Paso, Texas — Advocates for migrants filed a lawsuit Friday in federal court challenging a new Biden administration restriction on asylum that officials say will deter unlawful crossings along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The American Civil Liberties Union and other groups asked the federal district court in San Francisco to block the rule, saying the policy, which took effect Friday, violates U.S. asylum law.

At the center of the suit is a regulation the Biden administration is hoping will deter illegal border crossings following the end of the Title 42 pandemic-era expulsion policy. It expired at midnight Thursday due to the termination of the national COVID-19 public health emergency.