A federal judge on Tuesday slammed the brakes on the Trump administration, ordering that a group of migrants being flown to South Sudan must not be released from US immigration custody. The move came after it appeared that these migrants were deported in defiance of a court order.
During an urgent virtual hearing, US District Judge Brian Murphy in Boston said he wouldn't command the plane to turn back, but made it crystal clear that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) could choose to do so to comply with his ruling.
Murphy issued a stern warning—if officials violated his earlier order, which prohibited swift deportations to third countries without allowing migrants to voice concerns over torture or persecution, they could face criminal contempt charges.
“I strongly suspect that my preliminary injunction has been breached,” Murphy told Elianis Perez, a Justice Department attorney.
Appointed by President Joe Biden, Murphy declared that any migrants covered by his injunction and currently en route to South Sudan must remain in government custody until a follow-up hearing scheduled for Wednesday.
He emphasized that DHS, which oversees ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), had various options for compliance—including keeping the migrants on the tarmac inside the plane after landing.
“I’m not restricting DHS on where to hold them,” Murphy stated. “If they want to turn the plane around, that’s their call.”
The agency remained silent and did not respond to media inquiries.
This situation reflects yet another showdown between the federal courts and the Trump administration, which has pushed aggressively for mass deportations under its hardline immigration policy.
Just last month, another judge, James Boasberg in Washington, found there was “probable cause” to pursue criminal contempt against officials for violating his order halting the deportation of Venezuelan migrants, who had been denied the chance to challenge their removal.
Adding fuel to the fire, the Supreme Court on Friday blocked the administration’s attempt to deport Venezuelans under an ancient 1798 law, originally meant for wartime use, citing a lack of due process.
The class-action lawsuit before Murphy came in response to a February directive from DHS, instructing officers to review cases of individuals who had protections against deportation to their native countries. The agency wanted to determine if these individuals could instead be detained again and shipped off to a third country.
Murphy’s April 18 preliminary injunction demanded that any such migrants must receive due process under the Fifth Amendment and be given a “meaningful opportunity” to express any fears for their safety.
On Tuesday, lawyers for the plaintiffs revealed that about a dozen migrants detained in Texas were being flown to South Sudan, a country known for its dangerous conditions, even for its own citizens.
The United Nations has consistently warned that South Sudan’s deepening political crisis could spark a revival of the brutal civil war that ended in 2018.
Among those on the flight was a Vietnamese man held at the Port Isabel detention center in Texas. Perez confirmed during the hearing that the man had been convicted of murder, while another DHS lawyer admitted that someone on the plane had a rape conviction.
The Vietnamese man’s spouse contacted his lawyer, saying he and ten others had been deported to South Sudan, including nationals from Laos, Thailand, Pakistan, and Mexico.
“Please help!” the spouse pleaded. “They cannot be allowed to do this.”
Attorneys for other migrants added that a lawyer for a man from Myanmar had also been told that he was being deported to South Sudan.
However, Perez later claimed the man was actually sent to Myanmar—but couldn’t explain the change. Attorney Trina Realmuto from the National Immigration Litigation Alliance called the switch “illogical.”
Murphy had previously updated his injunction to close loopholes, ensuring DHS couldn’t hand off migrants to other agencies like the Department of Defense (DoD) to carry out rapid deportations.
That update came after the administration argued Murphy’s order didn’t apply to the DoD, and admitted the Defense Department had flown four Venezuelan detainees from Guantánamo Bay to El Salvador, sidestepping Murphy’s directive.
The judge firmly stated that if the military were to deport migrants to a place like Libya, that would “clearly violate” his ruling.
Description:
A federal judge has halted the deportation of migrants to South Sudan, warning the Trump administration of potential criminal contempt for violating a court order. The ruling comes amid rising tensions over the administration’s aggressive immigration policies, with concerns over due process, human rights, and the use of third-country deportations. This article breaks down the legal battle, the role of DHS and ICE, and the implications for migrants facing dangerous conditions abroad.