Colorado Springs’ Dreamers react to judge’s recent DACA ruling

The ruling means renewal applications for DACA recipients can resume for now giving hope to roughly 700,000 young people nationwide. So what’s next for dreamers and how long will the judgment last? NewsChannel13’s Cinthia Maldonado asked one immigration expert.

President Trump’s plan to phase out protection for DACA recipients is now blocked by a federal judge. “When I read the announcement I was like really really overjoyed.”

It brings hope to Dreamers like Monica Perez. “I have a lot of friends who didn’t get to renew their DACA.”

As immigration attorney Alex McShiras explains, “This is all very complicated.”

The recent injunction might cause some confusion since the March 5th deadline is no longer in effect. “Anyone with DACA who currently has DACA can renew.”

Some new applicants can apply depending on their case. “They’ll make an exception which the agency being USCIS could accept new applications like on a case-by-case basis if there’s a deserving person.”

The new ruling states that advance parole; a process that allows undocumented immigrants to re-enter the country legally is not an option for Dreamers. But the government can make an exception.

Monica is a DACA advocate in Colorado Springs and says the new ruling brings a lot of uncertainty.

“Right now they’re basically playing political games with our lives which I think is very unfair.”

“This is not the way to make good law. At the end of the day Congress needs to act to fix this. It’s not going to be an injunction from a judge, this is probably going to get appealed, there’s still a lot of uncertainty, this might go to the supreme court.”

The fate of DACA and the roughly 700,000 Dreamers remains a subject of heated negotiations in Washington with no set deadline.

California attorney general Xavier Becerra is backing up the judge’s ruling, but the Trump Administration vows to fight it.