Judge orders Trump admin to 'not remove' Venezuelans after ACLU says they were 'persecuted' as criminals
Source: Law & Crime
Apr 14th, 2025, 4:17 pm
A federal judge in Colorado has demanded that the Trump administration not remove a pair of Venezuelan men in immigration custody who say they have been wrongly persecuted and characterized in the media as members of the notorious Tren de Aragua gang saying they must remain in the U.S. until the Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit or lower court vacates her new order protecting them, as the president continues to deport people under an 18th-century wartime authority.
U.S. District Judge Charlotte N. Sweeney handed down the directive in a Monday minute order after lawyers for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a lawsuit over the weekend and emergency motion for a temporary restraining order (TRO) on behalf of two anonymous men, identified as D.B.U. and R.M.M., who are being held at the Denver Detention Contract Facility in the Mile High City.
Lawyers for the ACLU say the two Venezuelans are at imminent risk of removal under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 (AEA), which is being used by the Trump administration to justify its mass deportations of Venezuelan men that it claims are members of Tren de Aragua (TdA) without due process or proof, the ACLU says.
The Colorado filing marks the third time a federal suit has been filed by the ACLU over the governments use of the AEA. The group is also leading a prominent case in Washington, D.C., overseen by U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, and another in Texas.
Read more: https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/may-never-get-out-of-these-prisons-judge-orders-trump-admin-to-not-remove-venezuelans-after-aclu-says-they-were-persecuted-as-criminals/
Full headline: May never get out of these prisons: Judge orders Trump admin to not remove Venezuelans after ACLU says they were persecuted as criminals
There are 3 cases for this going - the biggie in D.C., one in TX, and this one now in CO.

CitizenZero
(748 posts)Only Congress has the power to declare war. We are not at war. He can not legally use the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. It can only be used during war time. Further, he uses no due process to remove these individuals. So Trump is clearly acting illegally and defying the courts. He must be stopped. A contempt ruling might be the way to go.
groundloop
(12,767 posts)When in hell are they going to start putting tRump administration officials in jail for contempt? The people enabling this bullshit need to rot in jail until Kilmar Garcia is back home with his family.
moniss
(7,048 posts)decisions on this stuff could be done in less than a day. No foot-dragging by the fascists about how they "need time to respond" etc. and then their response is to stonewall and deny info that was ordered to be produced. Put them in court at 9:00 a.m. and give them 15 minutes for their argument about why they think they shouldn't be held in contempt. Then issue a decision from the bench and order the bailiffs to immediately seize the government lawyers, Rubio, Noem and Bondi.
Garcia has suffered in this torture camp while the lawyers and judges all go around in their suits and ties and have nice lunches, cocktails and dinners and go home to their families. It's high time they display a sense of understanding and urgency.