DeSantis Scores Legal Victory in Migrant Flights Lawsuit
Debarylife – Ron DeSantis was dismissed from a lawsuit by a federal judge on Monday, following the Republican governor of Florida’s arrangement to transport undocumented immigrants from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard in 2022.
U.S. District Judge Allison D. Burroughs dismissed DeSantis and other former and current employees from the lawsuit in a 77-page decision, citing “insufficient facts” in the case.
Allison stated that the court was unable to “ascertain what actions were taken by whom and therefore cannot determine which, if any, of those individual Defendants transacted business or caused injury here, leaving it no choice but to find that, at least on this record, personal jurisdiction has not been established.”
Nevertheless, the decision left open the prospect of additional legal action being taken against Vertol, the Florida-based business that charged $1.5 million to arrange the flights.
Similar to his Texas and Arizonan counterparts, DeSantis began transporting undocumented immigrants to liberal states in late 2022 to draw attention to the shortcomings of the Biden administration’s southern border policy.
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Known for being a haven for wealthy progressives, Martha’s Vineyard is home to former President Barack Obama, who purchased a multimillion-dollar home there in 2019.
However, his office clarified at the time that they may potentially be deported “to other ‘progressive’ states whose governors endorse blatant violations of federal immigration law.” DeSantis suggested Delaware or Martha’s Vineyard as destinations for such migrants.
A representative for DeSantis’ office said, “As we’ve always stated, the flights were conducted lawfully and authorized by the Florida legislature.”
“We look forward to Florida’s next illegal immigration relocation flight, and we are glad to bring national attention to the crisis at the southern border.”