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A federal appeals court has temporarily blocked the deportation of five Venezuelan migrants who were being held at the El Valle Detention Center in South Texas.
The move comes as a response to a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and other advocacy groups, which argued that the administration’s use of the Alien Enemies Act to summarily deport hundreds of Venezuelans was unconstitutional.
On Monday, a three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued an emergency stay, temporarily blocking the deportations until further proceedings can take place.
The administration had previously used the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to quickly deport hundreds of Venezuelan migrants who were being held at the El Valle Detention Center. The law allows for the summary deportation of foreign nationals amid a declared war or “invasion” by a foreign nation, but has been leveraged only three times in U.S. history.
However, in a statement, the ACLU argued that the administration’s use of the law was unconstitutional and violated international human rights norms.
“The Trump administration is using this law as a pretext to summarily deport hundreds of Venezuelan migrants without due process or legal recourse,” said ACLU attorney Lee Gelernt. “We urge the court to block these deportation orders and ensure that these individuals receive the fair treatment they are entitled to under U.S. law.”
The migrants, who have been held at the El Valle Detention Center for several months, were being targeted for deportation due to their alleged affiliation with the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, which Trump has claimed is effectively invading the United States.
However, human rights groups and legal experts have criticized the administration’s use of the Alien Enemies Act as a “knee-jerk reaction” that ignores international law and undermines U.S. asylum procedures.
“This is a major blow to the Trump administration’s efforts to use this obscure law to deport hundreds of Venezuelans without due process,” said Stephen Yale-Loehr, an immigration lawyer and professor at Cornell Law School. “The court has recognized that these individuals have a right to a fair hearing and cannot be deported based on mere allegations or speculation.”
It is unclear when the court will issue a permanent ruling on the matter, but the temporary block on deportations provides a reprieve for the affected migrants.
In a statement, Trump administration officials refused to comment on the decision, citing ongoing legal proceedings.
Source: https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/5240978-judge-blocks-venezuelan-deportations/
