Obama-appointed Judge James Boasberg on Monday rejected the Trump Administration’s request to vacate the temporary restraining order (TRO), but offered to convert it to a preliminary injunction.
Since TROs are typically unappealable, the Trump Administration will be able to appeal if the TRO is converted to an injunction.
The Trump Administration has until March 26 to inform the court.
Boasberg said the deported aliens are entitled to individual hearings!
BREAKING: Judge James Boasberg rejects Trump administration bid to lift order blocking deportations of Venezuelans under Alien Enemies Act, says deportees are entitled to individualized hearings. Doc: https://t.co/HhftKI2wwd Earlier: https://t.co/Cpg3Epnp4g
— Josh Gerstein (@joshgerstein) March 24, 2025
On Friday, Judge Boasberg said Trump’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act to deport criminal aliens is “incredibly troublesome and problematic.”
Although Boasberg did not issue a ruling on Friday, he threatened the Trump Admin with consequences if they violate his order in the future.
Boasberg has been grilling DOJ lawyers about the Trump Administration’s move to deport dangerous Venezuelan aliens under the Alien Enemies Act.
A showdown between Boasberg and the Trump DOJ played out in court last week after the judge issued an order forcing planes en route to Central and South America carrying dangerous Venezuelan aliens to turn around and come back to the US.
On Sunday, the Trump DOJ provided an update to Boasberg’s order and said the criminal aliens were outside of US territory when the order came down.
The DOJ argued that the Judge has zero jurisdiction over international airspace.
Read the full article here