Photo Credit: Joshua L. Jones/file

"Victoria" told Flagpole last year that her husband, a 22-year Athens resident, was deported, leaving behind her and their grandchildren, who may never see him again.

A Supreme Court ruling has put in jeopardy the Obama Administration’s plan to shield 4 million undocumented immigrants from deportation.

A 4-4 tie (due to Senate Republicans’ refusal to vote on the late Justice Antonin Scalia’s replacement) announced this morning means that an injunction on expanding the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program will remain in place—for now.

DACA allows undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children before 2007 to remain here and work legally. Obama announced in 2014 that he would expand the program to cover newer arrivals, as well as the parents of U.S. citizens and green-card holders. Texas and 26 other states sued to stop the program.

That expansion is now on hold. The original judge could rule in favor of DACA expansion. If not, the Obama Administration (or, more likely, the Clinton Administration) could also appeal the final ruling to the Supreme Court, where by that time perhaps the Senate would have confirmed the president’s nominee to fill Scalia’s seat.

Athens’ Latino community has been hit hard by Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids in the past year or so, with a number of fathers and grandfathers deported. More recently, Flagpole has received reports from immigrant advocates that mothers are being targeted and are opting to take their American-born children with them back to their home countries when they are deported. Those parents would be protected by DACA expansion.