A federal judge in Washington is intensifying his inquiry into whether Trump administration officials defied a March 15 order halting the deportation of 137 Venezuelan men designated as members of a transnational gang under the Alien Enemies Act, the centuries-old wartime authority invoked by President Donald Trump.
Judge James Boasberg announced Monday that he is expanding the investigation of the circumstances surrounding the removals, Politico reported.
Boasberg said it is premature to recommend criminal charges against Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who publicly acknowledged giving the order to transfer more than 100 Venezuelan detainees to El Salvador.
Noem has said she acted based on legal guidance from attorneys at the Department of Justice — guidance protected by privilege and within the executive branch's authority.
Still, Boasberg is demanding testimony from two DOJ officials involved in the March operation, including one lawyer who was fired after refusing to carry out certain administration directives.
The Department of Justice declined to comment on what many conservatives view as an escalating judicial overreach, the report said.
The clash centers on Trump's invocation of the Alien Enemies Act, which allows the executive branch to detain and deport nationals of hostile or dangerous foreign groups in times of national threat.
Trump used that authority on March 14 to order the immediate removal of Venezuelan gang members identified as part of a violent transnational organization. Federal agents quickly apprehended the men and began transporting them out of the country.
Boasberg attempted to halt the flights the next day, inserting the judiciary into a national-security and immigration decision typically left to the executive branch.
Despite his recall order, two flights were already airborne, and a third operated under standard immigration law — not the Alien Enemies Act — according to DOJ.
The dispute reached the Supreme Court, which ruled that Boasberg lacked jurisdiction over the initial lawsuit, though the justices later addressed due-process elements unrelated to the deportations themselves.
Yet Boasberg has pushed forward with a contempt-style inquiry, leaning heavily on claims from former DOJ lawyer Erez Reuveni, who alleges senior officials ignored the judge's order.
Boasberg has now called Reuveni and DOJ official Drew Ensign to testify, according to the report. Ensign previously told the court he was not aware of imminent AEA removals during the chaotic March 15 hearing, even as operations were underway.
The judge has become a frequent target of Trump and congressional Republicans over a series of high-profile rulings critics say reveal a pattern of ideological activism from the bench.
Boasberg also played a central role in grand jury proceedings tied to special counsel Jack Smith's prosecution of Trump, further fueling concerns among conservatives that the judiciary is inserting itself into executive functions traditionally beyond its reach.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.