Key Points: Ethiopia Temporary Protected Status Blocked
- Ethiopia temporary protected status blocked again by a federal judge on Friday
- Judge Brian Murphy issued the stay just weeks after a related Supreme Court ruling
- DHS accused the judge of “mutiny” against the nation’s highest court
- Roughly 5,000 Ethiopian nationals remain protected from deportation for now
A Massachusetts courtroom just became the latest battleground over who controls America’s immigration protections, and this round went against the Trump administration.
U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy issued an administrative stay Friday, keeping deportation protections in place for Ethiopian nationals living in the country.
Here’s the background driving this fight. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem determined in December 2025 that Ethiopia no longer met the conditions justifying its TPS designation.
That decision would have ended protections for roughly 5,000 Ethiopian nationals, following a standard 60-day wind-down period built into the termination process.
Murphy first intervened back in January, pausing that termination while the underlying legal challenge worked through the courts.
Here’s what makes Friday’s ruling especially significant. It came just weeks after the Supreme Court ruled in a related case, Mullin v. Doe, that TPS termination decisions for Syria and Haiti weren’t subject to judicial review at all.
That 6-3 ruling seemed to hand DHS a clear legal win, making Murphy’s continued block on Ethiopia’s case immediately controversial among administration officials.
DHS didn’t hold back its reaction either. A spokesperson accused Murphy directly of engaging in “mutiny” against the Supreme Court’s recent decision.
Legal experts see it differently. Murphy’s order specifically noted the court needs more time to properly evaluate constitutional claims raised separately from the underlying TPS determination itself.
That distinction matters enormously here. The Supreme Court’s ruling addressed judicial review of the Secretary’s factual findings, not necessarily broader constitutional questions plaintiffs are now raising in Ethiopia’s case.
This isn’t an isolated incident either. The same day, another Massachusetts judge issued a similar block protecting South Sudan’s TPS designation from termination.
For Ethiopian TPS holders specifically, the practical impact is immediate relief. Employment authorization documents remain valid, with USCIS confirming extended validity dates as recently as July 17.
With DHS and Department of Justice officials reportedly weighing next steps, and the underlying case still far from resolved, thousands of Ethiopian families face continued uncertainty about their long term status in the country.