Judge Raises Potential Implications in Trump’s Use of Wartime Law for Deportations

A Justice Department lawyer has maintained that the deportation flights were carried out legally.

Salvadoran police officers escort alleged members of the Tren de Aragua gang recently deported by the U.S. government to be imprisoned in the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) prison, as part of an agreement with the Salvadoran government, at the San Oscar Arnulfo Romero international airport in San Luis Talpa, El Salvador, on March 16, 2025. Secretaria de Prensa de la Presidencia/Handout via Reuters

U.S. District Judge James Boasberg said on Friday that President Donald Trump’s invocation of the Alien Enermies Act to deport alleged Tren de Aragua gang members has “incredibly troublesome” policy implications as the judge considers whether the Trump administration flouted his order to halt the deportation flights.

During a hearing, Boasberg asked whether the government would allow Venezuelan immigrants to challenge allegations that they were members of the Tren de Aragua gang—a U.S.-designated terrorist organization—before being deported, given that the 1798 law invoked by Trump allows noncitizens to be deported without having to go through legal process during wartime or invasion against the United States.