OAN Staff Brooke Mallory
1:38 PM – Tuesday, April 8, 2025
On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court permitted the Trump administration to resume deportations of Venezuelan gang members in Tren de Aragua (TdA) for the time being. However, the high court made it clear that those who are being removed, under the law, are still entitled to judicial review.
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In his emergency appeal, President Donald Trump presented the case as a battle for judicial authority, citing U.S. District Judge James Boasberg’s ruling that temporarily barred him from using the Alien Enemies Act against five Venezuelans.
Nevertheless, in the case involving the president’s enactment of the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, to quickly remove suspected Tren de Aragua gang members, the high court ruled in favor of the Trump Justice Department’s request for emergency relief.
Soon after, “conservative” Justice Amy Coney Barrett criticized the majority’s ruling and joined the liberal bloc, as per usual.
According to the Supreme Court’s unsigned ruling, the detainees contesting their removals under the Alien Enemies Act are imprisoned in Texas, making the District of Columbia (D.C.), where the case has been heard, an “improper” venue.
“As a result, the government is likely to succeed on the merits of this action,” the court said in its ruling, lifting two temporary restraining orders issued by a federal judge (James Boasberg) that prevented removals under the Alien Enemies Act.
Detainees covered by the 1798 statute “must receive notice” that they could be removed under the Alien Enemies Act, it further stated.
“The notice must be afforded within a reasonable time and in such a manner as will allow them to actually seek habeas relief in the proper venue before such removal occurs,” the court stated.
The Trump administration requested the Supreme Court to overturn a federal district court judgment last month that barred its agency from deporting illegal aliens under the 220-year-old legislation, while legal processes proceeded.
Meanwhile, challenges to at least six of the GOP president’s policies have reached the Supreme Court so far, which holds a 6–3 conservative majority. However, conservative Justices Barrett and Roberts often align with the liberal bloc — effectively narrowing the ideological divide to a more nuanced 6–5 dynamic.
One of the most well-known of the Trump administration cases is the ongoing battle over Trump’s efforts to deport Venezuelan illegal aliens and specifically TdA gang members, since the country is known for producing members of the violent gang.
The president and his Republican allies have also since called for the impeachment of the judge, Boasberg, who was overseeing the case — after the district court temporarily blocked the removals.
The high court stated in its ruling that the latter opinion affirms the right of detainees who are subject to removal orders under the Alien Enemies Act to be notified and given the opportunity to contest their deportation.
“The only question is which court will resolve that challenge. For the reasons set forth, we hold that venue lies in the district of confinement,” it said.
In addition to Justice Barrett’s “concerns,” a harsh dissent was delivered by liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who was partially joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson. She referred to the legal finding of the majority as “suspect” and claimed that the Trump administration had mostly disregarded “its obligations to the rule of law.”
“The government’s conduct in this litigation poses an extraordinary threat to the rule of law. That a majority of this court now rewards the government for its behavior with discretionary equitable relief is indefensible. We, as a nation and a court of law, should be better than this,” Sotomayor wrote.
Conservative Justice Brett Kavanaugh emphasized the court’s areas of agreement in a concurring opinion. He said that all nine justices concur that judicial review is possible. However, he said that they disagreed about the location of that review.
“The Supreme Court has upheld the Rule of Law in our Nation by allowing a President, whoever that may be, to be able to secure our Borders, and protect our families and our Country, itself. A GREAT DAY FOR JUSTICE IN AMERICA!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Soon after, Kristi Noem, the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), praised the decision and cautioned illegals who are still residing in the United States.
“Leave now or we will arrest you, lock you up and deport you,” she warned.
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