Trump argued Venezuelan terrorists were invading the U.S., but the appeals court ruled the Alien Enemies Act applies to a military invasion.

(THE CONVERSATION) A federal appeals court on March 26, 2025, upheld a temporary block on President Donald Trump’s deportation of hundreds of Venezuelan immigrants, including alleged members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, to a maximum security prison in El Salvador.

Trumps calls on Supreme Court to let him deport Venezuelans under Alien Enemies Act - Administration wants court to resume summary removals after deporting dozens of immigrants to El Salvador prison

On a Thursday morning last month, immigration agents knocked on the door of Leonel Echavez' Dallas home looking for someone else. Despite an upcoming immigration hearing, the 19-year-old Venezuelan was taken into custody for questioning about his tattoos.

The order by U.S. District Judge Edward Chen in San Francisco is a relief for 350,000 Venezuelans whose Temporary Protected Status was set to expire April 7 after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem reversed protections granted by the Biden Administration.

A U.S. judge on Monday blocked the Trump administration from stripping deportation protections for some Venezuelan immigrants, writing that officials' characterization of the migrants as criminals "smacks of racism.