The court rendered a 6-3 verdict in the case between the Department of State v. Sandra Munoz, U.S. Supreme Court, No. 23-334, the Republican justices (the 3 Democratic dissenting) deciding that there is no constitutionally protected right to live with your spouse. This decision, reversing a 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals decision holding the opposite, allows the government to exclude without explanation the spouse of a US citizen, failing to act on a visa petition, and dismissing her seeking review of the delay and failure to act. The plaintiff, a US Citizen and civil rights lawyer, has been separated from her husband for over 9 years, apparently over State Department concerns that he “might” be a gang member. The Supreme Court decision means that there is no review of that determination, effectively declaring that marriage does not include the right to live with your spouse where you choose, and courts may not review government decisions abridging that right. This follows the trend of the court to restrict personal rights affecting families, such as abortion, without any evaluation of the human or social costs involved, and a blind eye to consequences that can be overcome for those of extreme wealth and means.
The legal system has traditionally been a protector of ordinary citizens who seek a level playing field in a world with wide discrepancies of opportunity and wealth, as well as the physical environment. This court further abandons that tradition, effectively saying “nothing to see here” and letting the government act on the basis of political or other unknown reasons to diminish the rights and value of an ordinary citizen.
