Department of Justice, civil rights group to appeal federal judge's ruling declaring DACA illegal

The U.S. Department of Justice and a civil rights group filed legal notices on Thursday saying they plan to appeal a federal judge’s recent ruling that declared illegal a revised version of a federal policy that prevents the deportation of hundreds of thousands of immigrants brought to the U.S. as children.

In September, U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen in Houston ruled in favor of Texas and eight other states suing to stop the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, program. The federal policy was first created by the Obama administration in 2012.

In his ruling, Hanen expressed sympathy for DACA recipients and their families but said the executive branch had overstepped its authority in creating the program and it was up to Congress to take action on this issue.