The US Supreme Court on Friday temporarily blocked the Trump administration from using the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to expedite deportations of Venezuelan migrants in northern Texas, ruling that those facing removal are entitled to due process.
In an unsigned 24-page opinion, the court sided with two Venezuelan migrants who had received 24-hour deportation notices with no meaningful opportunity to contest their removal.
The justices sent the case back to the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals for further review, saying lower courts erred in dismissing the migrants’ appeal.
The ruling is a significant, though temporary, setback for former President Donald Trump, who invoked the centuries-old wartime statute in March to fast-track the deportation of alleged Venezuelan gang members.
The court noted that migrants cannot be removed “without opportunity, at some time, to be heard,” underscoring constitutional due process protections.
Only Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh concurred but urged the court to resolve the broader legal issues soon.
The majority criticised how the Trump administration handled the removals, including transporting detainees to an airport before returning them to detention.
It also rebuked US District Judge James Hendrix for failing to act promptly to block the deportations.
The American Civil Liberties Union, which brought the case, called the ruling “a powerful rebuke” of the administration’s attempt to use wartime powers in peacetime.
While the Supreme Court has not ruled on the broader legality of Trump’s use of the Alien Enemies Act, Friday’s decision effectively freezes all deportations under the law until further judicial review, with multiple federal courts now reviewing related cases across the country.
