The U.S. Supreme Court has issued a temporary halt on the deportation of a group of alleged Venezuelan gang members, following a legal challenge that accuses the Trump administration of violating due process protections under a rarely used 18th-century law.
The individuals are currently being held in detention in north Texas under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, a wartime statute that allows the president to detain and deport nationals of so-called “enemy” countries without standard legal proceedings. The law has historically been invoked only three times, most recently during World War II.
President Donald Trump had used the law to justify deportations of Venezuelan nationals allegedly linked to the violent Tren de Aragua gang. As of April 8, 261 Venezuelans had been deported to El Salvador, 137 of whom were removed under the Alien Enemies Act, a senior administration official told CBS News.
Civil liberties groups, led by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), filed a lawsuit challenging the deportations. They argued that the detainees had not been properly informed of their right to challenge their removal, nor provided with materials in their native language. Notices of deportation were reportedly issued in English, despite some detainees only speaking Spanish.
“Without this Court’s intervention, dozens or hundreds of proposed class members may be removed to a possible life sentence in El Salvador with no real opportunity to contest their designation or removal,” the ACLU argued in court filings.
In an initial ruling on April 8, the Supreme Court upheld the administration’s right to use the Alien Enemies Act but stipulated that deportees must be granted a chance to challenge their removal. The most recent order, issued Saturday, further pauses deportations pending judicial review. Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented from the order.
The Trump administration has faced mounting legal resistance since the president’s second term began in January, particularly over his aggressive stance on immigration. In his inaugural address, Trump vowed to eradicate foreign gangs from U.S. soil.
The case has drawn increased scrutiny following the wrongful deportation of Kilmar Ábrego García, a Salvadoran national the government identified as a member of the MS-13 gang. His family and legal representatives deny the claim, and he has no criminal convictions. Though the Supreme Court unanimously ordered the government to facilitate his return, the administration has refused, declaring that García would “never” be allowed back into the United States.
Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) recently visited García in El Salvador, where he was moved from the notorious Cecot mega-prison to a new facility. The senator has criticized the administration’s approach as a violation of human rights and due process.
The legal battle is ongoing, with wider implications for how the U.S. applies wartime laws in immigration enforcement.
