U.S. Supreme Court to hear Trump appeal over rapid deportation dispute

WASHINGTON, Oct 18 (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court stepped into a new immigration dispute on Friday, agreeing to hear an appeal by President Donald Trump's administration of a lower court ruling that could frustrate a top priority of his: quickly deporting illegal immigrants.

The justices agreed to review a ruling by the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that favored a Sri Lankan asylum seeker. The 9th Circuit found that a federal law that largely stripped the power of courts to review quick deportations - known as expedited removal - violated in his case a provision of the U.S. Constitution called the suspension clause. (Reporting by Andrew Chung and Lawrence Hurley; editing by Will Dunham and Grant McCool)