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    • Texas trial over Biden policy letting migrants from 4 countries into US to wrap up Friday

    A woman from Cuba waits with other migrants to be processed to seek asylum after crossing the border into the United States, Friday, Jan. 6, 2023, near Yuma, Ariz. (Gregory Bull/AP Photo) A woman from Cuba waits with other migrants to be processed to seek asylum after crossing the border into the United States, Friday, Jan. 6, 2023, near Yuma, Ariz. (Gregory Bull/AP Photo)
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    HOUSTON -

    A trial over a lawsuit seeking to end a key element of President Joe Biden's immigration policy that allows a limited number of people from four countries in the Americas to enter the U.S. on humanitarian grounds was set to conclude Friday.

    However, U.S. District Judge Drew Tipton in Victoria, Texas, was not expected to rule immediately on the legality of the humanitarian parole program once closing arguments wrap up. A decision could come months down the road.

    At stake is whether the federal government can continue a program that is allowing up to 30,000 people into the U.S. each month from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela. Migrants paroled under the program have sponsors in the country who vouch for them financially.

    The program has been successful at reducing migration and a humanitarian crisis on the southwest border and has also allowed federal agents to focus on border security, Brian Ward, a prosecutor with the U.S. Justice Department, said during closing arguments Thursday.

    But lawyers for Texas and 20 other Republican-leaning states that are suing to stop the program say the Biden administration has created its own immigration program that operates outside the law. The large numbers of migrants being paroled in the U.S. shows officials are granting parole en masse and not on a case-by-case basis as required by law, they contend.

    The administration "created a shadow immigration system," Gene Hamilton said Thursday. He's an attorney with America First Legal Foundation, a conservative legal nonprofit led by former Trump adviser Stephen Miller that's working with the Texas Attorney General's Office to represent the states.

    During testimony Thursday, an American who is sponsoring one of the migrants -- a 34-year-old friend from Nicaragua named Oldrys -- praised the programs economic benefits and credited it with letting him reciprocate kindness to someone who has suffered financial hardship in his home country.

    "We really see this as an opportunity to welcome Oldrys into our family .... in a time of need for him," Eric Sype said.

    Oldrys, whose last name has not been released, now lives in Sype's childhood home in Washington state, where Sype's cousin has offered him a job on the family's farm.

    Sype was the only witness during the trial as attorneys for Texas and the U.S. Justice Department, which is representing the federal government in the lawsuit, didn't offer testimony and rested their cases based on evidence previously submitted.

    Lawyers for Texas argued that the program is forcing the state to spend millions of dollars on health care and public education costs associated with the paroled migrants. Immigrant rights groups representing Sype and six other sponsors called those claims inaccurate.

    As of the end of July, more than 72,000 Haitians, 63,000 Venezuelans, 41,000 Cubans and 34,000 Nicaraguans had been vetted and authorized to come to the U.S. through the program.

    The lawsuit has not objected to the use of humanitarian parole for tens of thousands of Ukrainians who came after Russia's invasion.

    The parole program was started for Venezuelans in fall 2022 and then expanded in January. People taking part must apply online, arrive at an airport and have a sponsor. If approved, they can stay for two years and get a work permit.

    Other programs the administration has implemented to reduce illegal immigration have also faced legal challenges.

    Tipton, a Donald Trump appointee, has previously ruled against the Biden administration on who to prioritize for deportation.

    The trial is being livestreamed from Victoria to a federal courtroom in Houston.

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    • The principal of an Ottawa high school is apologizing to students, parents and guardians after an Arabic-language song was played during the school's Remembrance Day service.

    • Police say multiple people were arrested and firearms were seized after an unmarked police cruiser was struck by gunfire in Toronto’s West Queen West neighbourhood late Monday night.

    • A Brampton woman says she is devastated after she lost more than $200,000 — her life's savings — to a romance scam.

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    • A 36-year-old Montreal man who was out on bail after allegedly uttering death threats against his partner is now accused of murdering her on the South Shore.

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    • A New Brunswick fashion designer recently won the top prize at a national event for a dress she made using an unconventional material.

    • A Vancouver designer is making waves in the architectural world with an outdoor modular building created to address the city’s unrelenting housing crisis.

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    • A stretch of Highway 1 in Burnaby will be closed during the Tuesday morning commute after a “serious†crash, officials say.

    • Flames shot out of windows and debris came showering down onto the street as crews battled a fire at a North Vancouver highrise Monday afternoon.

    • Second World War veteran Percival Smith was a teenager when he entered the British Merchant Navy, but after years at sea he emerged as a man who returned to a family he "couldn't even recognize" after the war.

    • As Toronto readies for Taylor Swift’s arrival this week, some crowd management and planning experts say additional safety precautions should be taken when tens of thousands of fans fill the city's downtown core on show nights.

    • Police say multiple people were arrested and firearms were seized after an unmarked police cruiser was struck by gunfire in Toronto’s West Queen West neighbourhood late Monday night.

    • Two women were randomly attacked on GO trains Monday night and police say they are searching for a suspect in the 'unprovoked' assaults.

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    • Several international flights scheduled to land at Montreal-Trudeau International Airport had to be diverted due to the discovery of a 'package of interest.'

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    • Family members and friends of a 43-year-old man who was fatally shot by police in Hamilton over the weekend says they’re devastated by his death and are seeking answers and justice for their loved one.

    • Saskatoon Public Library workers will be on strike Tuesday as part of ongoing contract negotiations with SPL.

    • A look at some of the ways Saskatoon residents paid their respects on Remembrance Day.

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    • Changes proposed to the city’s Special Events By-law would allow outdoor concerts and music festivals to play later – but not louder.

    • A Barrie man is accused of being at the centre of an alleged $2.2 million stolen used car scheme.

    • Fire crews were called to an early-morning fire at recycling depot on John Street.

    • Hydro One says about 1,200 customers are without power in the Muskoka region.

    • Police in Chatham-Kent are hoping the public can help identify some people caught on surveillance following the theft of a vehicle. Around 5:05 p.m. on Nov. 5, police were called to a report of a stolen vehicle in Thamesville.

    • Rumors began spreading this morning that the school’s annual Winter Walkthrough in December was being postponed until January.

    • A pair of thieves ripped the door of an east Windsor sports apparel store on Monday morning, leaving the store owner on the hook for thousands in stolen merchandise.

    • A B.C. woman who stole more than $14,000 in volunteer-raised funds that were supposed to be spent on school supplies and programs – including hot meals for vulnerable kids – won't spend any time in jail.

    • A B.C. teen has a suspected case of H5N1 avian flu — the first known human to acquire the virus in Canada.

    • A B.C. woman who stole more than $14,000 in volunteer-raised funds that were supposed to be spent on school supplies and programs – including hot meals for vulnerable kids – won't spend any time in jail.

    • The emergency department at South Okanagan General Hospital in Oliver, B.C., will be closed for 31 hours this weekend, the second such closure in a week and the third since the start of November.

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    • If you were at the cenotaph Remembrance Day ceremonies in Lethbridge, you may have caught a glimpse of our Dory Rossiter there on crutches.

    • Canadians across the country spent Monday paying tribute to the soldiers who have fought and died while serving Canada.

    • The Southern Alberta Recreation Association is officially announcing the Town of Taber as next year’s host for the Southern Alberta Summer Games.

    • Remembrance Day celebrations took place across the country Monday, with Canadians reflecting on the sacrifices made by the men and women who served our country.

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