US Supreme Court Blocks Venezuelan Deportations Under Alien Enemies Act

The US Supreme Court has temporarily halted the deportation of a group of alleged Venezuelan gang members being held in detention in north Texas. The Trump administration had invoked an 18th-Century wartime law, the 1798 Alien Enemies Act, to deport the men, who claim they were not given a chance to contest their case in court. The law allows the president to order the detention and deportation of citizens of "enemy" nations without usual processes. A civil liberties group had sued the government on behalf of the detainees, saying they were given notices about their deportation in English, despite some only speaking Spanish, and were not told they had a right to contest the decision.

The US Supreme Court temporarily paused the deportation of immigrants potentially subject to the Alien Enemies Act, a sweeping 18th-century wartime authority invoked by the Trump administration. The court's decision came after a group of Venezuelan immigrants in Texas claimed they were at risk of being removed from the country without sufficient notice to challenge their deportation. A lower court judge had expressed sympathy for the migrants but felt he lacked the power to intervene. The Supreme Court's order directed the government not to remove the detainees until further notice, despite dissents from conservative Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas.

The Supreme Court issued a midnight order blocking the Trump administration from deporting a group of immigrants in Texas under the Alien Enemies Act, a 1798 law invoked by President Trump to speed deportations. The order was in response to an emergency appeal and did not explain the court's reasoning, with Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissenting. The court directed the government not to remove the detainees until further order and asked the administration to respond to the appeal "as soon as possible." The administration responded, saying it wants to remove the Venezuelans under other laws while litigation continues. The Supreme Court's previous order on April 7 allowed the administration to use the Alien Enemies Act but also entitled migrants to notice and an opportunity to challenge their removal through federal habeas corpus petitions.

The Supreme Court has temporarily blocked the deportations of Venezuelans held in a detention center in northern Texas under the Alien Enemies Act, an 18th-century wartime law. The court's order prevents the removal of the individuals until further notice, with Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissenting. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) had filed an emergency appeal on behalf of the detainees, arguing that they were being denied due process and were at risk of being deported to countries where they could face torture or death. The ACLU claimed that immigration authorities were using the Alien Enemies Act to swiftly remove immigrants identified as gang members, and that the detainees were not being given adequate notice or opportunity to contest their removals.

The Trump administration invoked the Alien Enemies Act, a wartime law, to deport Venezuelan migrants accused of gang membership, sparking a complex and high-risk legal battle. A timeline of key events includes: March 14, when the administration issued an executive order invoking the law; March 15, when the ACLU filed a lawsuit and a federal judge blocked deportations; March 16, when the administration deported migrants despite the judge's order; March 26, when a federal appeals court upheld the block; April 7, when the Supreme Court allowed deportations with certain constraints; April 18, when the ACLU filed an emergency petition as the administration prepared to deport Venezuelans; and April 19, when the Supreme Court blocked the deportations just hours before they were set to occur. The administration's actions have raised concerns about disregarding judicial orders and a potential constitutional crisis.

The Supreme Court issued an overnight ruling blocking the Trump administration from deporting a group of Venezuelan migrants accused of being gang members under an 18th-century wartime law. The court's unsigned order indicated deep skepticism about whether the administration could be trusted to follow an earlier ruling that required detainees to be notified before deportation. The administration had given notices to the detainees in English, a language many did not speak, and provided no realistic opportunity to challenge the move in court. The American Civil Liberties Union filed an emergency application, and the court acted quickly, directing the government not to remove any member of the putative class of detainees from the US until further order. The court's decision was unusual in that it did not wait for a ruling from the relevant appeals court or ask for a response from the administration, and Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas dissented.

The Supreme Court temporarily blocked the Trump administration from deporting a group of Venezuelan migrants accused of being gang members under the Alien Enemies Act, a rarely invoked wartime law. Over 50 Venezuelans were scheduled to be flown out of the US from an immigration detention center in Anson, Texas. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) had filed emergency challenges in multiple courts to stop the deportations, arguing that the migrants had not been given due process. The Supreme Court's order gave no reasoning, but justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented. The ACLU had already secured similar court orders in other locations, and is seeking a nationwide order to require the government to give 30 days' notice before deporting migrants under the Act.