A federal judge in Texas ruled against President Donald Trump’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act to deport alleged Venezuelan gang members to El Salvador.
The administration’s use of the 1798 legislation has caused controversy, with critics arguing that it is only supposed to be used against foreigners from countries that are at war with the United States.
US District Judge Fernando Rodriguez, appointed by President Trump, ruled that the White House can no longer use the act to deport any illegal immigrants in his district, CNN reported.
The ruling is a significant blow to Trump’s decision in March to invoke the Alien Enemies Act, which has faced numerous legal challenges and has been halted by several courts. But Rodriguez’s ruling is the first to conclude that the president exceeded his authority by relying on a law that was intended to be used during times when the US is at war.
The Trump administration, Rodriguez wrote, does “not possess the lawful authority under the AEA, and based on the Proclamation, to detain Venezuelan aliens, transfer them within the United States, or remove them from the country.”
“The President cannot summarily declare that a foreign nation or government has threatened or perpetrated an invasion or predatory incursion of the United States, followed by the identification of the alien enemies subject to detention or removal,” the judge wrote.
He continued: “Allowing the President to unilaterally define the conditions when he may invoke the AEA, and then summarily declare that those conditions exist, would remove all limitations to the Executive Branch’s authority under the AEA, and would strip the courts of their traditional role of interpreting Congressional statutes to determine whether a government official has exceeded the statute’s scope. The law does not support such a position.”
Although Trump’s use of the Alien Enemies Act has been litigated in multiple courts nationwide, including the Supreme Court, Rodriguez is the first judge to have reached a final decision on the merits.
Lee Gelernt from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) highlighted the significance of the ruling. “This is the first court to squarely rule on the fundamental question of whether a wartime authority can be used during peacetime and properly concluded it can not,” he told CNN.
The plaintiffs, three Venezuelans who were detained at El Valle Detention Center, denied any affiliation with the Tren de Aragua street gang. They argued that the president’s invocation of the act failed ot meet the statutory threshold of an “invasion” or “predatory incursion” by a “foreign nation or government.”
The judge pointed out that “The historical record renders clear that the President’s invocation of the AEA through the Proclamation exceeds the scope of the statute and is contrary to the plain, ordinary meaning of the statute’s terms.”
Rodriguez further insisted that the president’s proclamation lacked “sufficient factual statements” to justify using the Alien Enemies Act.
The Proclamation makes no reference to and in no manner suggests that a threat exists of an organized, armed group of individuals entering the United States at the direction of Venezuela to conquer the country or assume control over a portion of the nation.
The judge issued a permanent injunction prohibiting the Trump administration from using the act to deport illegal immigrants.
The Trump administration first came under scrutiny when it used the Alien Enemies Act to deport nearly 300 Venezuelans to El Salvador. The government claimed that at least some of these individuals were members of Tren de Aragua.
US District Judge James Boasberg formally issued an injunction against the move, but the planes were already in the air. The judge is expected to begin contempt proceedings against the White House for violating the court’s order. A federal appeals court recently placed a temporary block on the contempt proceedings.
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