WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court in the early hours of Saturday told the Trump administration not to take any action to deport alleged Venezuelan gang members currently based in Texas while litigation continues.
The court did not grant or deny an application filed by lawyers for the detainees, but effectively hit pause on the case, which affects people currently held within the jurisdiction of the Northern District of Texas.
“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,” the brief order said. It noted that an appeals court has yet to act on a similar request.
Two conservative justices, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, disagreed with the decision, the order noted.
On Friday afternoon, at least one charter bus rolled up to the Bluebonnet Detention Center in Anson, Texas, a town about 200 miles west of Dallas, where the men are being held.
Administration officials are seeking to deport the men, who they say are members of the Tren de Aragua gang, under a wartime law called the Alien Enemies Act. There are major questions about whether the government has the authority to apply the law to gang members