The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday blocked President Donald Trump’s attempt to restart deportations under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act for a group of immigrants in northern Texas. The court sided with Venezuelan migrants who feared they faced imminent removal under this rarely used wartime authority.
This ruling represents a significant setback for the Trump administration, which aimed to use the law to speed up deportations and bypass the usual judicial review that typically accompanies such actions. However, the decision is temporary, and the broader legal battle over the president’s use of the Alien Enemies Act will continue to play out in federal courts across the country.
The Supreme Court sent the case back to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit to further examine critical legal questions. These include whether the president’s invocation of the law is lawful and, if so, how much notice migrants should receive before deportation proceedings begin.
Two conservative justices, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, expressed disagreement with the majority’s ruling. Alito criticized the court’s intervention at this stage, arguing that the Supreme Court was overstepping by deciding important legal questions before lower courts had completed their review.
The unsigned opinion from the court criticized both the Trump administration’s handling of the removals and the way U.S. District Judge James Hendrix managed the case at an earlier stage. The court referenced a related case involving Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland man who was mistakenly deported to El Salvador. The Trump administration admitted it could not arrange for his return to a prison in El Salvador, highlighting the serious consequences of wrongful removals.
The court emphasized that because deportations under the Alien Enemies Act could result in permanent removal without adequate legal safeguards, the stakes for those detained are particularly high. The justices criticized the administration’s practice of providing only 24 hours’ notice to migrants, which lacked essential information about how to contest their removal or assert their due process rights.
In its order, the Supreme Court sent the case back to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, stating that the lower court had erred in dismissing the migrants’ appeal. This decision effectively extends a temporary freeze on deportations under the Alien Enemies Act that the Supreme Court had initially imposed in April.
Legal experts point out that because courts in other districts have also blocked the use of the act, the ruling means deportations under this law are effectively on hold nationwide until the courts fully resolve the legal questions.
The court also took issue with Judge Hendrix’s handling of the case, noting that his refusal to halt deportations after a 14-hour delay effectively denied emergency relief to migrants facing immediate and severe harm.
In a dissenting opinion, Justice Alito, joined by Justice Thomas, argued that the Supreme Court’s intervention was premature. He criticized the majority for stepping in too early and dictating how the appeals court should handle the case.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh concurred with the court’s decision to block the deportations but said he would have preferred the Supreme Court to take up the case fully and provide a prompt final ruling. He argued that the situation warranted swift resolution and that only the Supreme Court could deliver that.
This ruling comes amid broader judicial scrutiny of the Trump administration’s immigration policies. Just a day earlier, the Supreme Court heard arguments on another of Trump’s controversial proposals — ending birthright citizenship — which was also brought before the court on an emergency basis.
The Department of Justice did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Friday’s ruling.
President Trump reacted to the decision on social media, claiming that the Supreme Court was preventing the government from removing “criminals” from the country.
Meanwhile, lower courts across the nation continue to grapple with the legal challenges surrounding the Alien Enemies Act. The law requires cases to be handled in individual district courts rather than through a nationwide process, resulting in multiple lawsuits in Texas, Nevada, Colorado, and other states.
Some federal judges have issued permanent injunctions blocking the use of the act. A Trump-appointed judge in southern Texas ruled earlier this month that the president had unlawfully invoked the law.
Trump first invoked the Alien Enemies Act in March as part of a campaign promise to accelerate deportations of alleged members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua. The administration moved quickly to deport hundreds of Venezuelans to El Salvador, where many remain detained.
However, after lower courts blocked further deportations, the Trump administration appealed to the Supreme Court, citing national security concerns and seeking permission to continue removals.
In a mixed ruling in April, the Supreme Court allowed the administration to continue using the law but affirmed that migrants must receive adequate notice and an opportunity to challenge their deportation through habeas corpus petitions.
The American Civil Liberties Union, representing the migrants, has filed numerous lawsuits seeking to protect Venezuelans affected by the law.
As recently as mid-April, some Venezuelan detainees in northern Texas began receiving notices of imminent deportation, sometimes with less than 24 hours’ warning.
The courts have largely blocked these deportations while the legal process continues, but the outcome remains uncertain as the judicial review unfolds.
Source: CNN
