In response to a lawsuit by two non-profit organizations arguing that President Donald Trump may use a wartime legislation to expedite the deportation of unauthorized migrants, a federal court temporarily barred the U.S. government from deporting further Venezuelans.
Earlier on March 15, 2025, the case was filed by Democracy Forward, another nonprofit organization, and the American Civil Liberties Union.
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In the complaint, the organizations claimed that the Aliens Enemies Act of 1798 was “imminent” and that its use would be unlawful since it has only ever been “a power invoked in a time of war, and plainly only applies to warlike actions.”
The court issued a temporary restraining order, preventing the government from deporting five Venezuelans for a period of 14 days, but it did not decide on the wartime legislation. In their case, the ACLU stated that they are requesting asylum.
An inquiry was not immediately answered by the White House. The government has challenged the judge’s temporary restraining order, according to court documents.
The complaint pointed out that only the War of 1812, World War I, and World War II had made use of the wartime statute.
Chief Judge James Boasberg of the District of Columbia federal court said in his decision, “Given the exigent circumstances that it has been made aware of this morning, it has determined that an immediate Order is warranted to maintain the status quo until a hearing can be set.”
The judge scheduled an initial court hearing for later March 15 and a follow-up hearing for March 17.
In a joint statement, Democracy Forward and ACLU said they will request that the interim restraining order be extended to include everyone who may be removed under the legislation.
Many Japanese Americans were forcibly interned in camps during World War II. In 1988, the U.S. government issued an official apology for the acts and compensated the surviving victims.
A federal court in Washington, D.C., recently refused to prematurely stop the transport of ten migrant prisoners to the U.S. military facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in a different case spearheaded by the American Civil Liberties Union.
Carl Nichols, a judge appointed by Trump, stated that the migrants had not yet experienced “irreparable harm” that would warrant halting the transfer.
The ACLU had claimed that the transfers were illegal under U.S. immigration law because they took the inmates abroad and were intended to incite fear without a valid reason. In similar court papers, former Trump administration prisoners described severe circumstances and suicide attempts.
During the hearing, a Justice Department lawyer stated that all the immigrants who had previously been detained at Guantanamo had been returned to the United States.
