U.S. Supreme Court pauses deportations of Venezuelan migrants under wartime law

Thomson Reuters

· Posted: Apr 19, 2025 11:19 AM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago

The U.S. Supreme Court aboriginal connected Saturday paused President Donald Trump's medication from deporting Venezuelan men successful migration custody aft their lawyers said they were astatine imminent hazard of removal without the judicial reappraisal antecedently mandated by the justices.

"The authorities is directed not to region immoderate subordinate of the putative people of detainees from the United States until further bid of this court," the justices said successful a brief, unsigned decision.

Conservative Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito publically dissented from the decision, issued astir 12:55 a.m. ET.

Lawyers for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed urgent requests connected Friday successful aggregate courts, including the Supreme Court, urging contiguous enactment aft reporting that immoderate of the men had already been loaded onto buses and were told they were to beryllium deported.

The ACLU said the accelerated developments meant the medication was poised to deport the men utilizing a 1798 law — which historically has been employed lone successful wartime — without affording them a realistic accidental to contention their removal arsenic the Supreme Court had required.

The White House did not instantly respond to a petition for remark connected the Supreme Court decision.

Prospect of constitutional crisis

The lawsuit raises questions about the Trump administration's adherence to limits acceptable by the Supreme Court. It carries the hazard of a important clash betwixt the 2 coequal branches of authorities and perchance a full-blown law crisis.

Elected past twelvemonth connected a committedness to ace down connected migrants, Trump invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act successful an effort to swiftly deport accused members of Tren de Aragua, a transgression pack originating from Venezuelan prisons that his medication labels a violent group.

The instrumentality was past used to detain non-citizens of Japanese, German and Italian descent during the Second World War.  

The president and his elder aides person asserted that their enforcement powerfulness grants them wide authorization connected migration matters, investigating the equilibrium of powerfulness betwixt branches of government.

During a proceeding connected Friday, a authorities lawyer said successful a related lawsuit that helium was unaware of plans by the Department of Homeland Security to deport the men that time but determination could beryllium deportations connected Saturday.

Trump scored 1 triumph connected Friday erstwhile an appeals tribunal enactment connected clasp a menace by District Judge James Boasberg of contempt charges.

Boasberg besides denied an ACLU petition to artifact Trump from deporting suspected members of Tren de Aragua, citing an April 7 Supreme Court ruling that allowed Trump to usage the Alien Enemies Act, albeit with definite limits.

Boasberg said helium was acrophobic the authorities would deport further radical arsenic soon arsenic Saturday but that, "at this point, I conscionable don't deliberation I person the powerfulness to bash thing astir it."

Trump antecedently called for Boasberg's impeachment pursuing an adverse ruling, prompting a uncommon rebuke from U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts.

While 1 proceeding played retired successful Boasberg's court, the ACLU worked connected a abstracted way to halt the deportations of Venezuelans held successful Texas.

LISTEN | Are the U.S. and El Salvador defying the U.S. Supreme Court? 

ACLU lawyers filed with the Supreme Court aft failing to get a accelerated effect from earlier filings connected Friday — earlier U.S. District Judge James Hendrix successful Abilene, Texas, and the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals successful New Orleans — to artifact immoderate specified deportations.

In Saturday's order, the Supreme Court invited the medication to record a effect to the ACLU's petition aft the Fifth Circuit acts.

Forms indicated men are gang members, ACLU says 

The ACLU said the men had been handed forms indicating they were classified arsenic members of Tren de Aragua.

At contented is whether the Trump medication has met the Supreme Court's modular for providing the detainees owed process earlier sending them to different state — perchance to the notorious situation successful El Salvador wherever others are jailed.

It was unclear connected Friday however galore radical were perchance to beryllium deported, and wherever they mightiness beryllium taken.

The ACLU filed a photograph of 1 of the notices with the court.

"You person been determined to beryllium an Alien Enemy taxable to apprehension, restraint and removal," work the notice. The recipient's sanction was obscured, and it was noted that the migrant refused to motion it connected Friday.

Trump supports removal of 'bad people'

Asked astir the planned deportations connected Friday, Trump said helium was unfamiliar with the peculiar lawsuit but added: "If they're atrocious people, I would surely authorize it."

"That's wherefore I was elected. A justice wasn't elected," helium told reporters astatine the White House.

Defence lawyers and Democrats successful Congress person pressed the medication to show however it knows the Venezuelans are members of the gang, which is progressive successful quality trafficking and different crimes successful South America but has a smaller U.S. presence.

"We are not going to uncover the details of counter-terrorism operations, but we are complying with the Supreme Court's ruling," Tricia McLaughlin, the adjunct caput for U.S. Homeland Security, said successful a connection connected Friday.

On March 15, the Trump medication deported much than 130 alleged Tren de Aragua members to El Salvador. Many of the migrants' lawyers and household members accidental they were not pack members and had nary accidental to quality the government's assertion that they were.