A federal judge has ruled that West Point can continue to consider race in admissions to its military academy, per NBC News.
On Wednesday (Jan. 3), U.S. District Judge Philip Halpern declined a preliminary injunction request made by Students for Fair Admissions, a group founded by anti-affirmative action activist Edward Blum that sued the military academy over its race-conscious admissions policy.
Halpern said it couldn’t rule in the group’s favor at this early stage in the case “without a full factual record to establish whether the use of race in West Point’s admissions furthers compelling governmental interests,” NBC News reports. The judge also noted that accepting the injunction request at this stage would disrupt the current admissions cycle.
The ruling comes after Students for Fair Admissions sued West Point and the U.S. Naval Academy in the wake of the Supreme Court rejecting affirmative action. In the Supreme Court’s ruling, justices didn’t address race in admissions at military academies.
A federal judge in Maryland rejected SFFA’s injunction request against the Naval Academy on December 14.
In response to the latest ruling, Blum said his group was “reviewing the opinion and will be taking the next steps to stop the unfair and unconstitutional racial preferences at West Point.” The SFFA has also filed an emergency notice of appeal.
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