The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Monday on whether a federal law, which criminalizes the encouragement of unauthorized immigration, violates the First Amendment. The case involves Helaman Hansen who deceived more than 471 non-citizens by offering adult adoptions that he falsely claimed would lead to citizenship. For this, he was charged with violating a federal law that violates a person who "encourages or induces" a non-citizen to come to or remain in the U.S. illegally.

Attorneys for Hansen argued that the law was too broad and hence unconstitutional. However, the court’s conservative majority seemed unlikely to grant relief to Hansen, with Justice Neil Gorsuch pointing out that the law had been on the books for 70 years. Justice Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan pushed back against the government's willingness to prosecute under the law, saying this would amount to a violation of the First Amendment.

The law carries penalties of up to five years in prison for those inducing non-citizens to illegally stay in the U.S. The penalties can increase to up to 10 years if the person does it for their financial gain. The justices are expected to arrive at a decision by the end of June.