Judge Justin Walker ruled in favor of President Donald Trump in a case into whether a judge can block him from using the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to deport individuals believed to be part of a Venezuelan gang without due process.
Why It Matters
Trump’s actions on a range of matters, including immigration, a cornerstone of his campaign, have been held up in legal limbo after judges sided with challenges raising concerns about the constitutionality of these policies.
His administration’s use of the 1798 law to deport individuals with alleged connections to the Tren de Aragua gang is among those to face legal challenges.
While Trump has argued he has the legal authority to order deportations under the law, critics say its use without due process is leading to the deportation of migrants who do not have ties to the gang and that standard court procedure should be followed in these cases as the United States is not at war with Venezuela.
What To Know
A three-judge sided againstthe Trump administration about whether or not the deportations could continue after D.C. Judge James Boasberg halted the deportations using the law earlier in March.
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Walker, who was appointed by Trump to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in 2020, dissented from the other two justices. In his dissent, he argued that the plaintiffs needed to file their lawsuit in the place where they’re detained, which would have been Texas. But, since they filed it in D.C., Walker said the Trump administration is “likely to succeed in its challenge” to the district court’s order.
Walker added that the Trump administration showed the district court’s order threatens “irreparable harm” to negotiations with foreign countries on national security matters.
“And that harm, plus the asserted public interest in swiftly removing dangerous aliens, outweighs the Plaintiffs’ desire to file a suit in the District of Columbia that they concede they could have brought in Texas,” Walker wrote
Walker also argued that the executive order Trump issued falls within his power to protect the nation and preference should be given to the president.
The other judges on the case were Karen Henderson, appointed by former President George H.W. Bush, and Patricia Millett, appointed by former President Barack Obama. They both ruled against the Trump administration.
Prior to Walker’s appointment to the D.C. appeals court, Trump appointed him to the District Court for the Western District of Kentucky in 2019. Walker served on that court for just under a year before being confirmed to the appeals court.
What People Are Saying
Lee Gelernt, deputy director of the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project and lead counsel, in a March 15 statement: “The Trump administration’s intent to use a wartime authority for immigration enforcement is as unprecedented as it is lawless. It may be the administration’s most extreme measure yet, and that is saying a lot.”
President Donald Trump wrote of Judge James Boasberg on Truth Social: “This judge, like many of the Crooked Judges’ I am forced to appear before, should be IMPEACHED!!!”
The Department of Justice, in a March 15 filing requesting a stay in the case: “This Court should halt this massive, unauthorized imposition on the Executive’s authority to remove people that Defendants had determined to be members of TdA, a group the President and the Secretary of State have found to be a threat to national security. This Court should halt this unprecedented intrusion upon the Executive’s authority to remove dangerous aliens who pose grave threats to the American people.”
What Happens Next
The Trump administration will likely continue facing legal challenges on several fronts, including other immigration policies.
