WASHINGTON — A federal judge examining the Trump administration’s use of an 18th-century wartime law to deport Venezuelan immigrants to El Salvador vowed Friday to “get to the bottom” of whether the government defied his order to turn the planes around.
Chief Judge James Boasberg is trying to determine if the administration ignored his turnaround order last weekend when at least two planeloads of immigrants were still in flight.
“I will get to the bottom of whether they violated my order, who ordered this and what the consequences will be,” Judge Boasberg said during a hearing for a lawsuit challenging the deportations.
Earlier Friday, the Justice Department informed the judge that top leaders in President Donald Trump’s administration are debating whether to invoke a “state secrets privilege” in response to the district judge’s questions about the deportation flights.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a court filing that there are “ongoing Cabinet-level discussions” about Judge Boasberg’s demand for more information. Judge Boasberg ordered the Trump administration to either provide more details about the flights or assert a claim that disclosing the information would harm “state secrets.”
The Republican administration has largely resisted the judge’s request, calling it an “unnecessary judicial fishing” expedition. Judge Boasberg dismissed its response as “woefully insufficient,” increasing the possibility that he may hold administration officials in contempt of court.
The Trump administration has transferred hundreds of Venezuelan immigrants to El Salvador under the 18th century law. Flights were in the air last Saturday when Judge Boasberg, orally from the bench, issued an order temporarily barring the deportations and ordered planes to return to the U.S.
The Justice Department has said that the judge’s oral directions did not count, that only his written order needed to be followed and that it couldn’t apply to flights that had already left the U.S.
Trump and some Republican allies have called for impeaching Judge Boasberg, who was nominated by President Barack Obama, a Democrat. In a rare statement earlier this week, Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts said “impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision.”
During Friday’s hearing, Judge Boasberg said the Trump administration’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelan immigrants carries “incredibly troublesome” policy ramifications.
The act allows noncitizens to be deported without the opportunity to go before an immigration or federal court judge. Trump’s Saturday proclamation called the Tren de Aragua gang an invading force.
“Why was this law essentially signed in the dark and these people essentially rushed onto planes?” Judge Boasberg asked. “It seems to be that you only do that if you know it's a problem and you want to get them out of the country before lawsuits can be filed.”
Judge Boasberg pressed Justice Department attorney Drew Ensign to explain how Venezuelan immigrants covered by Trump’s proclamation can challenge their deportations before they are removed from the U.S. The judge pointed to the U.S. Supreme Court’s finding that people imprisoned at Guantanamo Bay after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks were entitled to challenge whether they had any ties to al-Qaida.
Mr. Ensign said the Department of Homeland Security is complying with the law during deportations, and people could file challenges individually in Texas, where they were held before being sent to El Salvador.
American Civil Liberties Union attorney Lee Gelernt said the government set up an administrative hearing board during World War II to give people a chance to contest their removal.
“There was not these kind of summary removals,” added Mr. Gelernt, an attorney for the deported immigrants.
First Published: March 21, 2025, 7:27 p.m.
Updated: March 21, 2025, 11:32 p.m.
