http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/10/nyregion/brooklyn-lawsuit-could-affect-the-fate-of-millions-of-immigrants-nationwide.html 2016-10-10 02:20:09 Brooklyn Lawsuit Could Affect the Fate of Millions of Immigrants Nationwide Martin Batalla Vidal is challenging a 2015 ruling by a federal judge in Texas, which was upheld by the Supreme Court, that halted an expansion of President Obama’s signature immigration plan. === In his 26 years, Martin Batalla Vidal has been many things: a Mexican citizen, a New York City resident, a high school graduate, a nursing student, a caterer, a health club janitor and an undocumented immigrant. Recently, however, he took on another role: a plaintiff suing the federal government. In August, Mr. Batalla Vidal filed a lawsuit in Brooklyn claiming that officials of the “Texas has their own laws,” Mr. Batalla Vidal, who lives in Ridgewood, Queens, said recently. “But other states, like New York and California, we’re different. I just thought it wasn’t fair for myself and millions of other people that a judge somewhere else could affect our lives.” A bit of background: In November 2014, Mr. Obama used his executive powers to A month after the executive orders were signed, Texas, among other states, sought a court order to the stop the programs. In February 2015, a federal judge in Texas, Andrew S. Hanen, Mr. Batalla Vidal found himself caught up in this contentious litigation. With the help of “When I first got the letter, I didn’t understand what was going on,” Mr. Batalla Vidal said. “I had just received my permit, so how were they going to revoke it?” Mr. Batalla Vidal came to New York from Mexico at 7, settling with his parents and three younger brothers in Jackson Heights, Queens. When the family moved to Bushwick, Brooklyn, Mr. Batalla Vidal attended the Bushwick Leaders’ High School for Academic Excellence. “Mr. Batalla Vidal considers New York his home,” his lawsuit says, “as it is the only place he has lived as an adult.” When Mr. Batalla Vidal’s work status was altered by the government, he was working two jobs: at a catering company and as a desk clerk and housekeeper at a New York Sports Club. He eventually enrolled in ASA College in Brooklyn, pursuing a medical assistant degree. Although he received a scholarship specifically designed for DACA students, the revocation of his three-year permit has jeopardized his ability to support himself and to pay the remainder of his tuition. And so over the summer, with the help of his lawyer, Vanessa Dell, he got in touch with Michael J. Wishnie, a professor at Yale Law School. On Aug. 25, Mr. Wishnie filed a lawsuit on behalf of Mr. Batalla Vidal in Federal District Court in Brooklyn, asking a judge to declare that the Texas injunction “does not apply to New York residents.” “I think the potential impact here could affect millions of people,” Mr. Wishnie said. He estimated that about 2,600 DACA recipients nationwide had their three-year work permits revoked because of the Texas ruling. But if Mr. Batalla Vidal’s lawsuit spares New Yorkers from the ruling, hundreds of thousands of people in the state could be eligible again not only for the expanded DACA privileges, but also for those that were available under DAPA. That number, Mr. Wishine said, could increase even more if plaintiffs in other states like California and Illinois also sue and win. Though a decision in the case is months away, Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis, who is considering the suit, seemed to look upon it favorably at a hearing in Brooklyn last month. Adam Kirschner, a lawyer for the federal government, told Judge Garaufis that the Obama administration had strenuously fought the Texas ruling, but that, because it had been upheld, immigration officials were now in the “untenable position” of having to enforce it in New York. Judge Garaufis said he sympathized with the government’s position, but he refused to be “hamstrung,” as immigration officials were, “in dealing with an issue involving individual rights.” “I don’t know what’s going on out there in Texas on the border, but I know what’s going on in New York,” he continued. “And I’m very concerned about it, and I have absolutely no intention of simply marching behind in the parade that’s going on out there in Texas, if this person has rights here.” The next hearing is scheduled for January. Mr. Batalla Vidal, who said he had been afraid to sue the government at first, now feels optimistic. “It just felt great to hear the judge,” he said. “At the end of the day, I’m not really fighting for myself — I’m fighting for my community.” Though he said he harbored no animosity toward Texas, he was clearly happy to live in New York. “I’ve never been to Texas,” Mr. Batalla Vidal said, “and honestly, I’m not interested in going.”