Supreme Court Clears Way for Trump Deportations Under Alien Enemies Act

The U.S. Supreme Court allows Trump’s deportation plans under the Alien Enemies Act, requiring due process for detainees before removal.

 

Washington, D.C. — In a landmark ruling on Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court gave the Trump administration a partial green light to resume deportations under the rarely used Alien Enemies Act, while also mandating that detainees must be granted the opportunity to legally challenge their removal before deportation.

 

The decision, split 5-4 among the justices, overturns a lower court order that had blocked the deportation of men alleged to be members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua without legal proceedings. The deportations would be directed toward El Salvador, where some detainees are alleged to have committed violent crimes.

 

The Alien Enemies Act, a wartime law from the 18th century, has historically been invoked only when the United States is formally at war. Trump’s administration used it in a novel context, arguing national security concerns warranted its activation.

 

In its unsigned opinion, the court stated:

 

“AEA detainees must receive notice after the date of this order that they are subject to removal under the Act. 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 ruling sets a precedent for how far presidential powers can be stretched under emergency legal frameworks. It also restricts the scope of nationwide injunctions from lower courts by asserting that individual district judges cannot unilaterally block executive actions of such scale.

 

The original case was brought by five Venezuelan nationals held in U.S. custody, and Judge James Boasberg of Washington, D.C., had provisionally certified the lawsuit as a class action applying to all Venezuelans in similar detention situations.

 

Boasberg's injunction, issued on March 15, had temporarily halted the administration’s deportation plans. Monday's Supreme Court ruling lifts that order while litigation continues, allowing deportations to proceed — provided individuals have the chance to file habeas corpus claims.

 

While conservative justices sided with the Trump administration, Justice Sonia Sotomayor issued a blistering dissent, calling the government’s approach “an extraordinary threat to the rule of law.” She emphasized that the court’s decision reflects an erosion of judicial oversight in times of heightened political urgency.

 

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson criticized the court’s use of the so-called “shadow docket” — emergency rulings issued without full briefings or oral arguments. She compared the decision to historical missteps, notably the court’s approval of Japanese American internment during World War II, warning of similarly “devastating consequences.”

 

Despite the controversy, administration officials celebrated the ruling.

Attorney General Pam Bondi wrote on X (formerly Twitter):

 

“An activist judge in Washington, DC does not have the jurisdiction to seize control of President Trump’s authority to conduct foreign policy and keep the American people safe.”

 

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem called the decision a "victory for commonsense security."

 

While the ruling is not a final judgment on the legality of applying the Alien Enemies Act to alleged gang members, it gives the Trump administration momentum as it pursues an aggressive deportation strategy during a tense election year. Legal experts expect the case to return to the high court after further proceedings in the lower courts.