On Thursday, a federal judge officially prohibited the Trump administration from using the Alien Enemies Act, a law from the 18th century, to deport Venezuelans labeled as criminals from the Southern District of Texas. The judge determined that the administration’s application of this law was unlawful.
Judge Fernando Rodriguez Jr.’s ruling is the most comprehensive yet among various judges reviewing the administration’s attempts to utilize this rarely applied law in its extensive deportation efforts.
In his 36-page ruling, Judge Rodriguez, nominated by President Trump, fundamentally challenged the administration’s interpretation of the Alien Enemies Act, which was enacted in 1798 when the early United States confronted the threat of war with France, arguing its application to modern immigration issues is inappropriate.
The Supreme Court has already mandated that Venezuelans targeted for expulsion under Trump’s proclamation using this act must have the opportunity to contest their deportation. Judge Rodriguez’s decision went further, contending that the administration had misinterpreted the law, which is meant to target individuals from hostile nations during declared wars or military invasions.
Although Judge Rodriguez’s ruling specifically pertains to Venezuelan immigrants in the Southern District of Texas — including cities such as Houston, Brownsville, and Laredo — it may influence other cases concerning the administration’s use of the Alien Enemies Act.
“The court concludes that as a matter of law, the executive branch cannot use the A.E.A., based on the proclamation, to detain the named petitioners and the certified class, or to remove them from the country,” wrote Judge Rodriguez.
He emphasized that terms like “invasion” and “predatory incursion” referred to military attacks and did not align with Trump’s assertions regarding the activities of Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan street gang, in the context of the Alien Enemies Act proclamation.
The American Civil Liberties Union has filed at least eight lawsuits challenging the statute in various states, including Texas, New York, Colorado, Pennsylvania, Nevada, Washington, and Georgia. Federal judges in six cases have issued temporary orders halting the administration from deporting Venezuelans associated with Tren de Aragua to a prison in El Salvador.
Lee Gelernt, the A.C.L.U.’s lead attorney in these cases, hailed Judge Rodriguez’s ruling.
“This decision correctly recognized that the president cannot simply declare an invasion and use wartime authority during peacetime,” commented Gelernt. “As the court noted, Congress never intended for this law to be utilized in this manner.”
The White House has not yet responded to requests for comments.
At the beginning of his judgment, Judge Rodriguez dismissed a claim from the Justice Department asserting that he lacked the power to review the White House’s invocation of the act, which has only been activated three times in U.S. history: during the War of 1812 and both World Wars.
Department lawyers have consistently argued that judges do not have the authority to interfere with the president’s decisions on foreign policy. While Judge Rodriguez recognized that the Alien Enemies Act grants the president “broad powers,” he asserted that judges still possess the ability to assess whether the law is being applied accurately.
“The court retains the authority to interpret the A.E.A.’s terms and assess whether the stated basis for the proclamation appropriately invokes the statute,” he wrote.
However, the judge also clarified that he would not assess the validity of Trump’s claims, including the assertion that Tren de Aragua is controlled by the Venezuelan government — a position contradicted by U.S. intelligence. He stated that such judgments were for political entities to decide, so he would accept Trump’s conclusions as is.
Nonetheless, Judge Rodriguez concluded that Trump’s application of the law did not align with defined terms in the act. For example, he rejected the president’s assertions that the influx of Tren de Aragua members into the U.S. could be interpreted as an invasion or a “predatory incursion” as described in the law.
“In the majority of records, the use of ‘invasion’ and ‘predatory incursion’ implied an attack by military forces,” Judge Rodriguez stated, noting that those terms “involve an organized, armed force entering the United States to commit acts destructive of property and human life in a specific location.”
Judge Rodriguez, 56, was the first Latino appointed by Mr. Trump to the federal bench during his first term. Prior to his nomination, he was a partner at the prominent Houston law firm Baker Botts and worked in Latin America with the International Justice Mission, an evangelical Christian organization focused on combating human trafficking.
Judge Rodriguez’s order pertains to a class of plaintiffs, meaning unless the ruling is overturned upon appeal, the government cannot detain or remove anyone from his district based on Trump’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act.
Although the A.C.L.U. has had success in preventing the Trump administration from using the act for deportations, it has not yet succeeded in reversing the deportation of the nearly 140 Venezuelans sent to El Salvador on March 15 under the law.
These individuals remain in a notorious prison known as the Terrorism Confinement Center or CECOT.
Recently, attorneys for the American Civil Liberties Union requested Chief Judge James E. Boasberg of the Federal District Court in Washington to compel the administration to return these men to the U.S. so they could receive the due process that was denied due to their expedited removal.
In their argument to Judge Boasberg, lawyers referenced a Supreme Court decision regarding another individual deported to El Salvador, Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia.
The Supreme Court ruled that the White House must “facilitate” the return of Mr. Abrego Garcia from Salvadoran custody; he was wrongly sent on the same flights that took the Venezuelans.
Late Thursday, the Justice Department submitted court documents opposing the A.C.L.U.’s request for the men to be returned from El Salvador.
