WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge agreed on Friday to temporarily block the Trump administration’s efforts to expand fast-track deportations of immigrants who legally entered the U.S. under a process known as humanitarian parole — a ruling that could benefit hundreds of thousands of people.

The ruling blocks a new tactic employed by the Trump administration: detaining immigrants outside court appearances and putting them into a sped-up deportation process known as expedited removal.

Since President Donald Trump took office, agencies in charge of implementing the president's immigration agenda have expanded the use of expedited removals. Under President Joe Biden, the process typically applied to migrants who had entered the U.S. within 14 days and within 100 miles of the border.