US President Donald Trump’s administration has deported over 200 alleged “Venezuelan gang members” to CECOT, a notorious “mega-prison” in El Salvador.
The administration now admits that the alleged gang members have no criminal records. Nevertheless, the administration deported them despite a court order released by US District Judge James E. Boasberg instructing the administration to halt deportations temporarily.
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Still, the administration is concerned
an Immigration and Customs Enforcement official said in a sworn statement submitted in court filings that their not having a criminal record doesn’t mean that “they pose a limited threat.”
Additionally, ICE official Robert Cerna added: “[A] lack of specific information about each individual actually highlights the risk they pose.”
A judge begged to differ
Cerna also wrote: “It demonstrates that they are terrorists with regard to whom we lack a complete profile,” in court filings after Judge Boasberg ordered a temporary block of deportations under the Alien Enemies Act.
More about the Alien Enemies Act
Government lawyers called the act, “An affront to the President’s broad constitutional and statutory authority to protect the United States from dangerous aliens who pose grave threats to the American people.”
The judge is not satisfied
Judge Boasberg ordered government attorneys to reveal the flights’ timings when the planes left U.S. airspace and who was on them. The aim was to see whether his court order was intentionally defied or not by officials.
The Department of Justice is not on board
The Department of Justice attorneys have argued that “there is no justification to order the provision of additional information, and that doing so would be inappropriate.”
According to a court filing, they argued that those answers would “disclose sensitive information bearing on national security and foreign relations.”
Trump’s actions have angered many
Attorneys for deported Venezuelan immigrants appealed Trump’s action, writing to an appeals court on Tuesday, March 18:
“If the President can designate any group as enemy aliens under the Act, and that designation is unreviewable, then there is no limit on who can be sent to a Salvadoran prison, or any limit on how long they will remain there.”
The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers also weighed in
The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers President Christopher A. Wellborn made a statement condemning Trump’s actions, saying:
“Accusations without evidence, the denial of access to legal counsel, and the apparent defiance of court orders not to deport accused individuals without a hearing represent a dangerous departure from these principles,”
