A federal judge is weighing whether Trump disobeyed court order on deportation flights

A federal judge in Washington, D.C., is considering whether the Trump administration defied a court order by green-lighting a deportation flight carrying Venezuelan nationals to El Salvador.

President Donald Trump invoked the 18th-century Alien Enemies Act last month to fly hundreds of Venezuelans with alleged gang ties to a prison in El Salvador — without due process for the deportees and despite a court order blocking the use of the law.

Naureen Shah, director of the ACLU’s government affairs, equality division, says the government is not permitted to use the law right now.

“There’s a temporary restraining order in effect until April 12th, so the court has ordered them not to send people to El Salvador, to use the Alien Enemies Act as the sole basis for sending people,” she said.

But, Shah says, people are still being sent to El Salvador under the immigration code normally used in deportations. That includes a Maryland man with legal protected status in the U.S., who the administration says was sent to El Salvador by mistake.

The ACLU is one of the groups filing suit against the law’s invocation. Shah says the flights took off despite a court order.

“Judge James E. Boasberg issued oral and written orders in this case directing the Trump administration to halt removals under the purported authority of this act, including as flights were in the air,” she said.

On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Boasberg said he’s weighing whether there’s cause to find administration officials in contempt of court, for violating his March order halting the wartime authority.