White House Affirms Deportation Flights Were In Compliance with Judge’s Order

March 17, 2025 TruthUSA

According to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, the court’s order had no legal standing as it was issued after the deportation flights had already left U.S. territory.

Clarifying the situation, the White House stated that deportation flights carrying Venezuelan immigrants believed to be associated with the Tren de Aragua criminal gang—designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S.—did not violate a judge’s order, as the ruling came after the flights had departed U.S. soil.

“The Administration did not defy a court order,” stated press secretary Karoline Leavitt in a response to media inquiries.

She explained, “A single judge in one city does not have the authority to dictate the movements of an aircraft … containing foreign alien terrorists who were physically removed from U.S. territory.”

Leavitt’s statement followed U.S. District Judge James Boasberg’s decision on Saturday to block President Donald Trump’s proclamation invoking the Alien Enemies Act. Boasberg also mandated the return of deportation flights en route to El Salvador.

After the ruling, the government notified the court that “some gang members subject to removal under the Proclamation had already been removed from United States territory” prior to Boasberg’s order. It noted that the five Venezuelan detainees—the plaintiffs in the lawsuit leading to the court’s decision—are still within the U.S.

Leavitt emphasized that the ruling was unfounded and asserted that federal courts do not have jurisdiction over the president’s foreign affairs decisions.

When questioned about potential violations of the court order, President Donald Trump deferred to legal advisors.

“I can say this: these individuals were dangerous,” Trump stated to reporters while aboard Air Force One, regarding the suspected gang members.

Trump enacted the proclamation invoking the Alien Enemies Act on March 15 to expedite the deportation of alleged Tren de Aragua gang members. The administration also agreed to pay El Salvador $6 million to incarcerate approximately 300 alleged gang members, along with two purported MS-13 gang members, in its prisons for a year.

Before issuing the proclamation, Boasberg had issued a directive on March 15 prohibiting the deportation of the five plaintiffs, currently detained in Texas due to their alleged ties to the Tren de Aragua gang, for a two-week period pending legal proceedings.

Later that day, Boasberg issued a second order certifying a class action for all noncitizens affected by the presidential proclamation.

The court’s decision stemmed from a lawsuit filed by the ACLU and Democracy Forward, on behalf of the five plaintiffs, who argued that the Alien Enemies Act “clearly only applies to acts of war.”

“It cannot be utilized in this case against individuals from Venezuela—a non-enemy nation of the U.S. that is not invading or attacking the U.S.,” the complaint stated.

After news of Boasberg’s order surfaced, Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele posted on social media, saying, “Oopsie… Too late.”

Karoline Leavitt revealed that nearly 300 individuals suspected of being Tren de Aragua gang members have been deported “under the President’s directives,” in a March 16 statement.

She mentioned that these individuals “have been extracted and expelled to El Salvador, ensuring they no longer pose a threat to the American people.”

“TDA [Tren de Aragua] is one of the most violent and brutal terrorist organizations on the planet. They commit heinous crimes of rape, mutilation, and murder for pleasure,” Leavitt remarked.

Trump’s proclamation asserts that numerous Tren de Aragua gang members have “illegally infiltrated the U.S. and are engaging in unconventional warfare and hostile activities” against the nation.

Following Boasberg’s initial injunction against deportation proceedings involving the first five plaintiffs, the Department of Justice argued that upholding such a ruling would imply that any district court could halt virtually any urgent national security action upon receiving a complaint.

Jacob Burg, Ryan Morgan, and Reuters contributed to this report.

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