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A federal judge in Pennsylvania ruled Tuesday that former President Donald Trump can use the Alien Enemies Act (AEA) — a rarely invoked 18th-century wartime law — to deport undocumented Venezuelan citizens who are proven members of the Tren de Aragua gang, which the administration labeled a foreign terrorist organization.
U.S. District Judge Stephanie Haines, a Trump appointee, issued the decision in what appears to be the first federal judicial endorsement of Trump’s controversial March proclamation invoking the AEA to fast-track deportations without traditional immigration hearings.
“This case poses significant issues that are deeply interwoven with the constitutional principles upon which this Nation’s government is founded,” Judge Haines wrote, while emphasizing that she was not ruling on broader immigration powers or whether mere migration qualifies someone for removal under the AEA.
She limited her ruling to a narrow scope: Venezuelan nationals aged 14 or older, without legal immigration status, and who are actual members of Tren de Aragua, can be deported under the act. However, she ordered the government to give at least 21 days’ written notice in English and Spanish to any individuals it seeks to deport under the AEA — a dramatic extension compared to previous cases where some deportees were given just 12 hours’ notice.
The ruling stems from a lawsuit filed by a Venezuelan man who fled extortion, arriving in the U.S. with his family in 2023. He was arrested in February after a neighbor accused him of gang affiliation, a claim he strongly denies. The case was briefly approved as a class action, pausing AEA deportations in the district, but Haines lifted that designation Tuesday, allowing deportations to resume under her new guidelines.
Meanwhile, a separate ruling on Tuesday in Texas pushed back against the administration. Senior U.S. District Judge David Briones issued a temporary injunction barring the use of the AEA in his district, siding with a Venezuelan woman granted temporary protected status who was arrested and accused — without trial — of being in the gang.
Briones said she was likely to succeed in her constitutional challenge, noting the AEA’s use may violate due processand wrongly equates gang activity with an armed foreign invasion. His ruling blocks transfers and deportations of alleged gang members in West Texas until further hearings.
Trump’s March proclamation declared that Tren de Aragua — a transnational criminal group originally formed in Venezuelan prisons — constitutes a national security threat. Deportees have reportedly been sent to a prison in El Salvador.
The policy triggered a wave of lawsuits across multiple states, with at least three other judges criticizing the administration for overreach and lack of legal process.
Judge Haines noted that Congress and the executive branch, not the courts, are responsible for defining and executing such laws.
“The Court now leaves it to the Political Branches of the government, and ultimately to the people who elect those individuals, to decide whether the laws and those executing them continue to reflect their will,” she wrote.
The legal battle over the AEA’s use in immigration enforcement is expected to continue, as critics warn that the precedent could enable sweeping removals based on unproven allegations, while supporters argue it strengthens national security.
