In a narrow 5-4 decision issued Monday, the justices ruled that the Trump administration can resume deportations under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act (AEA), a law previously invoked only during declared wars.
The ruling also clarified that migrants targeted under the act must be allowed an opportunity to challenge their removal in court.
'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 justices wrote in an unsigned opinion.
The Court determined the legal challenge filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) on behalf of five Venezuelan migrants was improperly brought in Washington, D.C., rather than Texas, where the migrants are being held.
The case centers on a controversial March 15 deportation of planeloads of Venezuelan men to a maximum-security prison in El Salvador, which Trump justified under the AEA.
The administration argued the deportees were members of Tren de Aragua, a transnational gang Trump labeled a foreign terrorist organization. The group has been linked to sex trafficking, drug smuggling, and violent crimes in both Latin America and US cities.
Trump celebrated the decision on his Truth Social platform, calling it a 'great day for justice in America!'
'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,' he wrote.
While the administration claimed the migrants were 'carefully vetted' and verified as gang members, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) acknowledged that many had no criminal records.
Some families say their loved ones were wrongly deported based on tattoos or mistaken identity. Civil rights groups were divided in their reaction. The ACLU called the ruling both a disappointment and a partial victory.
'We are disappointed that we will need to start the court process over again in a different venue. But the critical point is that the Supreme Court said individuals must be given due process to challenge their removal under the Alien Enemies Act,' said Lee Gelernt, lead attorney for the ACLU.
Conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett joined the Court's three liberal justices in dissent, warning that the administration's approach posed 'an extraordinary threat to the rule of law.'
The lower court's block was initially imposed by district judge James Boasberg, who found the government's justification for using the law inadequate. His injunction was upheld by a federal appeals court before being overturned by the supreme court.
Boasberg had blasted the administration's response to his order as 'woefully insufficient,' noting that deportations had already begun when his ruling was issued. At least 137 people have been deported under the AEA so far.
Critics argue that Trump's use of the AEA sets a dangerous precedent. The law, passed in 1798 during tensions with France, grants the president sweeping authority to detain or deport citizens of an enemy nation.
Until now, it had only been used during officially declared wars, none of which the US currently has. Legal experts and human rights organizations warn that invoking such powers in peacetime, without congressional war authorization, could erode long standing constitutional protections.
IGIHE
Source : https://en.igihe.com/news/article/us-supreme-court-paves-way-for-wartime-deportations-by-trump
