Judge Boasberg to Address Trump Contempt in Deportation Case This Week
U.S. District Judge James Boasberg is set to hold a hearing this week regarding potential contempt of court actions against the Trump administration in a case involving the deportation of Venezuelan migrants. The hearing, scheduled for Wednesday, will bring together lawyers from both the Trump administration and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), representing the affected migrants. The hearing follows a prolonged legal battle over the administration’s alleged defiance of Boasberg’s previous court orders.
At the heart of the case is the administration’s controversial use of the Alien Enemies Act, a law dating back to 1798. This legislation allowed for the deportation of 252 Venezuelan migrants to a maximum-security facility in El Salvador in March. Judge Boasberg had issued an emergency order on March 15, 2023, prohibiting the immediate deportation of migrants to a third country and demanding the return of any flights that had already departed from U.S. soil.
Despite these orders, reports indicated that hundreds of migrants arrived in El Salvador shortly after the deportations. They remained there until July, when they were returned to Venezuela as part of a broader prisoner exchange involving the release of at least ten Americans and permanent U.S. residents held in the country.
The Trump administration contends that the deported individuals were associated with the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua. However, the ACLU and other advocacy groups have strongly challenged this assertion, citing multiple reports indicating that only a small number of those deported had serious criminal records. The use of the Alien Enemies Act has been rare in U.S. history, with its last application occurring during World War II.
Judge Boasberg has struggled to obtain information regarding those deported under the act and the officials responsible for the flights that violated his orders. In April, he determined that there was “probable cause” to initiate contempt proceedings against the Trump administration for failing to comply with his directive, citing a “willful disregard” for the court’s authority.
The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals had previously issued an emergency stay, halting Boasberg’s orders. In August, a panel of judges ruled 2-1 to dismiss the case entirely, but the decision has since been appealed for further review. Recently, an en banc panel of judges declined to review the ruling, effectively allowing Judge Boasberg to proceed with contempt proceedings for the first time in over 200 days.
In a minute order issued on Monday, Boasberg emphasized that he intends to address the contempt question promptly. The upcoming hearing will allow both parties to present updates and discuss the next steps in the legal inquiry. As of now, the Trump administration has not disclosed a list of the migrants sent to CECOT in March or provided details regarding their immigration statuses prior to deportation.
This ongoing saga highlights the contentious legal environment surrounding immigration policies and the Trump administration’s actions. Judge Boasberg has become a focal point in this battle, facing considerable scrutiny from the administration and its supporters, who have labeled him as an “activist judge.” As the hearing approaches, the implications of the court’s decisions could have significant ramifications for immigration policy and the treatment of migrants in the United States.
