In a highly unusual early Saturday morning Order, the Supreme Court has halted all deportations under the Alien Enemies Act.
There is before the Court an application on behalf of a putative class of detainees seeking an injunction against their removal under the Alien Enemies Act. The matter is currently pending before the Fifth Circuit. Upon action by the Fifth Circuit, the Solicitor General is invited to file a response to the application before this Court as soon as possible. The Government is directed not to remove any member of the putative class of detainees from the United States until further order of this Court. See 28 U. S. C. §1651(a).Justice Thomas and Justice Alito dissent from the Court’s order. Statement from Justice Alito to follow.
You can see the case docket here [link fixed]. The Order was issued before the government even had a chance to file a response to the Emergency Application brought on behalf of “Venezuelan men in immigration custody at risk of imminent removal under the President’s Proclamation invoking the Alien Enemies Act.”
What may have moved a majority of the court to act was the allegation that the current administration actions violated the prior Supreme Court order that removal under the AEA required some as yet unspecified due process to contest whether such persons were in fact gang members subject to the AEA Declaration:
Pursuant to Rule 23 of the Rules of this Court and the All Writs Act, 28 U.S.C. 1651, Applicants A.A.R.P, W.M.M., et al., on behalf of a proposed class of Venezuelan men in immigration custody, respectfully file this emergency application for a stay of removal and an immediate administrative stay to preserve the status quo for individuals challenging their removal under the Alien Enemies Act (“AEA”) in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas. Members of the proposed class are in imminent and ongoing jeopardy of being removed from the United States without notice or an opportunity to be heard, in direct contravention of this Court’s order in Trump v. J.G.G., No. 24A931, 2025 WL 1024097, at *3 (U.S. Apr. 7, 2025). Many individuals have already been loaded on to buses, presumably headed to the airport. Because of this ongoing and imminent risk of removal to a prison in El Salvador, Applicants are simultaneously seeking relief through a renewed application for a temporary restraining order in the district court in the District of Columbia and an application for a stay of removal in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
MORE TO FOLLOW
“In the middle of the night, SCOTUS has paused Trump from deporting illegals under the Alien Enemies Act. Trump has been relying on this law to effectuate mass deportations of illegals who are also gang members. There are around 11 million illegals in the US. The US does not appear to have another tool by which to readily remove large numbers of illegals. Under our current laws, Trump could only mass deport gang members, and that’s the part being challenged. Relying on the court system to adjudicate each alien case individually would take over a century and would cost taxpayers a fortune. Our current justice system is not equipped to handle the reality of illegal immigration in this country. SCOTUS will need to balance the rights to the individuals against the need of our country to remain sovereign. From there, Congress will need to draft new laws to help the country remain sovereign.”
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