Judge Orders Trump Admin to Return Illegal Aliens Deported to El Salvador
An Obama-appointed judge has ordered the Trump administration to facilitate the return to the United States of deported illegal aliens suspected of being members of the Tren de Aragua (TdA) gang.
In a ruling Thursday, Chief Judge of the US District Court for the District of Columbia James Boasberg said the Trump administration must “right the wrong it committed” by deporting hundreds of Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador, according to Policy.
While Boasberg asked the Trump administration to “pay the airfare and provide documentation to facilitate travel” for those who were expelled, he explained that migrants would be “detained upon arrival.”
“It is up to the government to right the wrongs it has committed here and to provide the means to do so,” Boasberg said. “If it were otherwise, the government could simply deport people from the United States without providing any procedures, and then, once they were in a foreign country, deny them any right to return for a hearing or opportunity to present their case from abroad. »
While the Trump administration “agreed to release the men into immigration custody if they arrive at a U.S. airport or border crossing,” Department of Justice (DOJ) lawyers object to “giving the men letters that would help them board flights to the United States,” according to the outlet.
In his order, Boasberg also criticized the Trump administration, stating that “this situation would never have occurred if the government had simply granted the plaintiffs their constitutional rights before initially deporting them.”
In March 2025, President Donald Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 as part of an effort to allow expedited deportation of Venezuelan migrants suspected of belonging to the TdA gang.
At the time, Boasberg issued an order blocking the Trump administration from attempting to deport these Venezuelan migrants.
In April 2025, the Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, lifted Boasberg’s block preventing the Trump administration from deporting suspected TdA gang members. The Supreme Court found that “the migrants improperly challenged their deportation in Washington, DC” when they should have challenged them in Texas.
