Judge Orders Trump Administration to Facilitate Return of Deported Immigrant

A judge appointed by President Obama has ruled that the Trump administration must help bring back to the United States an undocumented immigrant who was deported based on suspicions of being part of the Torren de Aragua (TdA) gang.

Chief Judge James Boasberg of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia stated in a ruling on Thursday that the Trump administration needs to “right the wrong it committed” by sending back numerous Venezuelan immigrants to El Salvador.

Boasberg instructed the administration to “cover airfare and provide necessary documentation” to assist these deported individuals, although he noted that the migrants would be “detained upon arrival.”

“It falls on the government to correct the mistakes made here and facilitate that process,” Boasberg commented. He also pointed out that without such measures, the government could expel individuals from the U.S. and then deny them any chance to contest their situation or seek redress from outside the country.

The administration has reportedly agreed to return the men to immigration custody if they arrive at a U.S. airport or border, but a Department of Justice lawyer pushed back against the idea of providing a letter to assist with their travel back to the U.S.

In his remarks, Boasberg criticized the Trump administration, noting that “if the government had simply honored the constitutional rights of these individuals before deporting them, we wouldn’t be facing this situation.”

Back in March 2025, President Trump had invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to expedite the deportation of Venezuelan immigrants suspected of ties to the TdA gang.

Earlier, Boasberg had issued a ruling to stop the Trump administration from deporting these Venezuelan immigrants.

However, in April 2025, the Supreme Court overturned Boasberg’s injunction in a narrow 5-4 decision, stating that the immigrants had incorrectly sought to challenge their deportations in Washington, D.C., when they should have done so in Texas.