Federal Judge Halts Trump Plan To End Haitian TPS

On Monday, February 2, 2026, hundreds of Ohioans braved the cold and packed into St. John Missionary Church in Springfield for a cause weighing heavily on their community: the looming expiration of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians living in the United States. With the deadline set for the following day, anxiety and hope mingled in the air as faith leaders, local officials, and Haitian community members pleaded for an extension that would allow thousands of their neighbors to remain legally in the country.

That same evening, a dramatic twist unfolded in Washington, D.C. U.S. District Court Judge Ana C. Reyes issued a sweeping ruling that blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to end TPS for an estimated 330,000 to 350,000 Haitians nationwide, including tens of thousands in Ohio and Florida. According to USA TODAY, Reyes declared the administration’s move “null, void and of no legal effect,” ensuring that TPS holders would retain their work authorization and be shielded from detention or deportation—at least for now.

For many, the decision brought a sigh of relief, but the uncertainty remains. “This 11th hour reprieve is, of course, welcome,” Lynn Tramonte, executive director for Ohio Immigrant Alliance, said in a statement reported by the Ohio Capital Journal. “But people can’t live their lives like this, pegging their families’ futures to a court case.”

TPS, a program designed to grant temporary legal status to immigrants from countries facing war, natural disasters, or other extraordinary conditions, was first extended to Haitians after the catastrophic 2010 earthquake that killed more than 220,000 people. The Biden administration renewed the designation in 2021 following the assassination of Haiti’s president, Jovenel Moïse. But the Trump administration, citing national security and a belief that conditions had improved, moved to end the protection—a decision that has now been halted by the courts.

Judge Reyes’ 83-page ruling, as detailed by USA TODAY, was sharply critical of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem for failing to consult with the State Department, U.S. Embassy in Haiti, or even Congress before making such a consequential decision. Instead, the process amounted to little more than a single email exchange. “Her ‘national interest’ analysis focuses on Haitians outside the United States or here illegally, ignoring that Haitian TPS holders already live here, and legally so,” Reyes wrote. She further noted that the administration ignored the billions contributed to the U.S. economy by Haitians under TPS.

The Department of State currently maintains a Level 4 “Do Not Travel” advisory for Haiti, citing rampant gang violence, political instability, and hunger. “Haiti is currently facing one of the most severe security crises in the world,” Viles Dorsainvil, executive director of the Haitian Support Center in Springfield, told the Ohio Capital Journal. Dorsainvil, who fled Haiti in 2020, described a country where “markets are inaccessible due to gang control, supply chains are disrupted, and livelihoods have been destroyed. Hunger and hatred today is not theoretical. It is immediate, daily and deadly.”

These dire conditions have left many Haitians in the U.S. with nowhere safe to return. “We must recognize that forcing Haitians to return under these conditions is neither safe nor just,” Dorsainvil said. The consequences of deportation would be personal and profound, especially for families with mixed immigration status. Guerline Jozef, executive director of Haitian Bridge Alliance, warned, “If we do not get a re-designation — an extension of TPS for Haitians — we are going to start one of the major family separations in modern history. We are going to see over 100,000 U.S. born children being ripped from their families.”

Springfield, Ohio, has become a microcosm of the national debate. Once one of America’s fastest-shrinking cities, Springfield’s population rebounded thanks in large part to Haitian immigrants. About 12,000 to 15,000 Haitians now call the city home, making up roughly a quarter of its 60,000 residents, according to the Ohio Capital Journal. “We shrunk all the way down to the population that we were in 1920,” said Carl Ruby, pastor of Springfield’s Central Christian Church. “When the Haitians started arriving, we became one of the fastest growing cities in America, and this is a great place to live.”

Their economic impact is undeniable. Deporting Haitians from Springfield would slash about $300 million in annual spending from Clark County, with the total economic loss projected to exceed $400 million. “Haitians TPS holders disproportionately work in direct care roles, which means that they’re caring for our seniors,” Pastor Keny Felix, president of the Haitian Baptist Fellowship, emphasized. “Removing them worsens an already fragile health care system. … They are an integral part of our economic system. To lose them is not just losing bodies, but it’s losing institutional skills.”

But as the court battle plays out, fear persists. Dorsainvil described how Haitians in Springfield are “scared to go to work or send their children to school. It has been a constant fear in the community. They are cautious not to drive.” The looming threat of family separation, job loss, and deportation casts a long shadow, especially with Ohio Governor Mike DeWine announcing a 30-day ICE enforcement surge in Springfield beginning February 5, 2026.

Judge Reyes’ ruling also tackled the question of motive behind the administration’s decision. Citing derogatory remarks by President Trump about Haiti and its people, Reyes wrote, “Whatever the context and at whatever level of sensitivity one considers them, the statements are what they are: unmitigated expressions of animus towards nonwhite foreigners.” She added, “Secretary Noem has a First Amendment right to call immigrants killers, leeches, entitlement junkies, and any other inapt name she wants. Secretary Noem, however, is constrained by both our Constitution and the (Administrative Procedures Act) to apply faithfully the facts to the law in implementing the TPS program. The record to-date shows she has yet to do that.”

Advocates for Haitian immigrants have argued that the administration’s move was driven not by an honest assessment of conditions in Haiti, but by racial animus. This case marks the first time that an equal protection claim based solely on race, rather than nationality, has gone before the courts in a TPS dispute, according to reporting from Miami Herald. The Trump administration, which has already ended TPS for countries such as Venezuela and Nicaragua, is expected to appeal Judge Reyes’ decision, potentially taking the battle to the Supreme Court. In the meantime, the fate of Haitian TPS holders—and the communities that depend on them—hangs in the balance.

As Springfield’s faith leaders and residents continue to rally for their Haitian neighbors, the words of Bishop Dwayne Royster, executive director of Faith in Action, ring out: “We do not defend Haitian families because they are economically useful. We defend them because they are the image bearers of God and children.” For now, the community holds its breath, praying that compassion and justice will prevail over politics and prejudice.