DOJ refuses to answer some questions from the judge who blocked Alien Enemies Act deportations

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Source: NBC News

Trump administration
DOJ refuses to answer some questions from the judge who blocked Alien Enemies Act deportations
“The Government maintains that there is no justification to order the provision of additional information," the Justice Department said in a court filing.

March 18, 2025, 12:45 PM EDT
By Gary Grumbach, Chloe Atkins and Dareh Gregorian

The Justice Department on Tuesday refused to answer a number of questions from a federal judge who had demanded more information on deportations that were carried out under a rarely used wartime act. ... "The Government maintains that there is no justification to order the provision of additional information, and that doing so would be inappropriate," the Justice Department said in a court filing responding to U.S. District Judge James Boasberg's ruling that it provide him with more information.

The filing, however, did include a declaration from an official with Immigration and Customs Enforcement answering some of the questions the judge had posed at a hearing Monday, at which he expressed frustration that the government had appeared to snub his order halting the deportations and its refusal to answer questions about its actions. ... The judge had summarized the government's position as "we don’t care, we’ll do what we want.”

In a verbal order on Saturday, Boasberg had directed any planes in the air carrying deportees to return to the U.S. after he issued a restraining order blocking deportations stemming from President Donald Trump's invocation of the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to deport suspected members of a Venezuelan gang. It was later revealed that the planes had arrived in El Salvador, raising questions about the timing of the flights and custody handover.

In his declaration, Robert Cerna, an acting field director of enforcement and removal operations for ICE, said that "three planes carrying aliens departed the United States for El Salvador International Airport" after Trump had issued his proclamation. ... "Two of those planes departed U.S. territory and airspace before 7:25 PM EDT," Cerna said, referencing the time the judge's written ruling was entered on the court docket. "The third plane departed after that time, but all individuals on that third plane had Title 8 final removal orders and thus were not removed solely on the basis of the Proclamation at issue," he added.

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Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-administration/doj-refuses-respond-questions-judge-blocked-alien-enemies-act-deportat-rcna196883

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Another thread, in GD:

Raw Story: 'There is no justification': Pam Bondi defies Judge Boasberg's demand for deportation info

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100220151788