A federal appeals court ruled on Tuesday that US President Donald Trump unlawfully invoked the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelans he alleges are part of a criminal gang.
The 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals is the first federal appeals court to rule directly on a March 14 presidential proclamation invoking the 1798 law to justify rapid deportations.
The decision from the 5th Circuit, a conservative-leaning court based in New Orleans, is expected to be appealed to the Supreme Court.
The case before the 5th Circuit was brought by a group of alleged Tren de Aragua members being held at the Bluebonnet Detention Facility in Anson, Texas. The American Civil Liberties Union, which represents the men, has disputed the claims of gang membership.
The act gives the government expansive powers to detain and deport citizens of hostile foreign nations, but only in times of war or during an “invasion or predatory incursion”.
In his March 14 proclamation, Trump said he would use the 1798 law to swiftly detain and deport members of Tren de Aragua. He claimed the gang is a state-sponsored international terrorist organisation that has invaded US territory.
The Supreme Court ruled in April that challenges to removal under the law must be brought in the federal judicial districts where detainees are being held.
The court said it was not resolving the validity of the administration's reliance on the law to carry out the deportations.
Since then challenges to the president’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act have been unfolding in courts across the country, and several judges have blocked deportations under the law within their judicial districts.
The case before the 5th Circuit briefly reached the Supreme Court in May.
In a brief order, the high court granted a request by the organisation that removals be halted while the case unfolds. The court also faulted the Trump administration attempting to swiftly remove the detainees one day after providing them with deportation notices.
“Notice roughly 24-hours before removal, devoid of information about how to exercise due process rights to contest the removal, surely does not pass muster,” the order stated.
Two conservative justices, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, dissented from the May ruling.
Reuters
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