Federal Judge Orders Deported Venezuelans To Be Returned To US

A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to facilitate the return of 137 Venezuelan men who were deported to El Salvador last year, ruling that some did not receive adequate due process before being removed from the United States.

U.S. District Judge James Boasberg issued the order Thursday, directing the government to arrange for the men’s return and to submit a status report by March 13. Boasberg cited as precedent the return of Kilmar Abrego-Garcia from El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) to the United States, a case that drew significant legal and diplomatic attention.

The ruling follows a hearing Monday during which Boasberg indicated he was inclined to require the men’s return. Justice Department attorneys told the court they would prefer the Venezuelans be returned to the United States rather than conduct remote hearings from El Salvador, Venezuela or other locations abroad.

The case stems from the administration’s deportation last March of 252 Venezuelan nationals it identified as suspected members of the Tren de Aragua gang, a transnational criminal organization that U.S. officials have linked to violent crimes across Latin America and in parts of the United States. The removals were carried out under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, a rarely invoked wartime authority that allows the executive branch to detain and deport nationals of hostile nations.

Trump administration officials have defended the use of the statute as a necessary measure to address what they describe as a growing threat from organized criminal networks operating across the southern border. The administration has argued that rapid removals were justified to protect public safety and national security.

Immigration advocates and several civil liberties groups, however, challenged the deportations in court, arguing that the men were denied individualized hearings and meaningful opportunities to contest the allegations against them.

The Justice Department has not yet indicated whether it will appeal the ruling.