Supreme Court turns down Arizona challenge of ‘Dreamer’ driver’s licenses

PHOENIX — The Supreme Court said Monday that Arizona had to continue issuing driver’s licenses to young immigrants known as “Dreamers,” refusing to hear the state’s challenge to the program that defers their deportation.

The justices did not comment Monday in leaving in place an appeals’ court decision in favor of the 20,000 or so immigrants who have remained in Arizona since the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals went into effect in 2012 under President Barack Obama.

The program has protected hundreds of thousands of young adults who were brought illegally into the country as children.

Then-Gov. Jan Brewer issued an executive order to prohibit DACA-protected immigrants from receiving state benefits, including driver’s licenses. The federal appeals court blocked the policy in 2014.

Brewer called the ruling “outrageous” and “misguided.”

Arizona was the first state to oppose DACA.

President Donald Trump’s administration has been trying to rescind the program, but has been blocked by federal courts. The president ordered in September that the program start shutting down in March.

Brewer said after the Trump announcement that Congress’ failure to pass immigration reform had not worked for anyone.

“I can’t imagine what all these 800,000 DACA recipients are feeling,” she told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Arizona’s Morning News last year.

“They’re living lives that are not desirable. The majority of us, we have no idea how they deal with it day in and day out but we also are a country of laws.”

The high court recently declined the administration’s request to take on the DACA case.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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