A federal judge in Texas has ruled that President Donald Trump’s administration overstepped the bounds of an 18th-century wartime law by utilizing it to deport certain Venezuelan migrants. The judge has prohibited the administration from employing this law to expedite deportations. The ruling was made by U.S. District Judge Fernando Rodriguez, who stated in a 36-page opinion that the administration cannot use the Alien Enemies Act to detain or deport alleged members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua. Rodriguez, appointed by Trump during his first term, declared that the administration’s use of this act through the Proclamation goes beyond the statute’s intended scope and contradicts its plain meaning. The Justice Department, representing the administration in court, has not yet responded to requests for comment on the ruling.
