Leng May Ma v. Barber
Headline: Court rules parole does not make arriving immigrants 'within the United States,' limiting their eligibility for stays against deportation to countries where they fear persecution.
Holding:
- Parolees seeking admission are not eligible for §243(h) stays against deportation.
- Maintains current parole practice without granting new stay protections.
- Limits relief for arriving parolees who fear return to hostile countries.
Summary
Background
A woman from China arrived in May 1951 claiming U.S. citizenship through her father. She was first held in custody, then released on parole in August 1952. After failing to prove her citizenship she was ordered excluded, the immigration board affirmed, and she surrendered for deportation in January 1954. She applied for a stay of deportation under a statute that lets the Attorney General withhold deportation of any alien "within the United States" if he believes the person would face physical persecution; administrative officials denied relief and she sought habeas corpus in the courts.
Reasoning
The central question was whether temporary parole makes an arriving person legally "within the United States" for the stay-of-deportation rule. The Court relied on the long-standing legal distinction between people seeking admission (handled in exclusion proceedings) and those who have entered (handled in deportation/expulsion proceedings). It pointed to the parole statute that explicitly says parole "shall not be regarded as an admission," earlier cases equating parole with detention at the border, and the fact that the stay provision appears in the chapter dealing with deportation. The Court concluded parole did not change the woman’s status, so she was not covered by the stay-of-deportation statute.
Real world impact
The decision means people who are physically present on parole while seeking admission are not treated the same as those who have entered the country for purposes of this statutory protection. Immigration officials can continue to use parole without creating automatic eligibility for stays, and some arriving parolees who fear return to hostile countries will have less legal shelter.
Dissents or concurrances
A dissent argued for a humane reading: because the woman was physically here on parole and faced likely persecution in China, she should at least be eligible for consideration under the stay rule; the dissent cited the immigration agency’s view of conditions in China.
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