In a landmark decision, U.S. District Judge Fernando Rodriguez Jr. ruled that the Trump administration unlawfully invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelan migrants without due process. The ruling, issued from Brownsville, Texas, includes a permanent injunction preventing the federal government from applying the Act to migrants detained in the Southern District of Texas.
The Trump administration had cited the Alien Enemies Act to summarily deport individuals it associated with the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, claiming they posed an invasion threat. However, Judge Rodriguez clarified that the Act only applies during wartime and for organized invasions, which the administration failed to prove.
Judge Rodriguez emphasized that an invasion cannot be declared based merely on presidential assertion. The decision criticized the lack of evidence showing an organized military threat from Venezuela or the Tren de Aragua gang.
This ruling marks the first permanent legal rebuke against the Trump administration’s use of this law. While Trump officials had used the Act to deport over 130 migrants to El Salvador and had planned more removals, the court’s decision blocks such deportations in southeastern Texas.
Legal advocates, including the American Civil Liberties Union, hailed the decision, emphasizing due process. The ruling is part of a broader legal battle over the administration’s expansive deportation policies under the Alien Enemies Act, which have already prompted emergency interventions from other courts and the Supreme Court.
