Judge says the Trump administration violated a court order on deportations to third countries

WASHINGTON AP The Trump administration violated a court order on deportations to third countries with a flight linked to the chaotic African nation of South Sudan a federal judge stated Wednesday hours after the administration disclosed it had expelled eight displaced persons convicted of violent crimes in the United States but refused to reveal where they would end up In an emergency hearing he called to address reports that immigrants had been sent to South Sudan Judge Brian E Murphy in Boston stated the eight expatriates aboard the plane were not given a meaningful opportunity to object that the deportation could put them in danger Minutes before the hearing administration bureaucrats accused activist judges of advocating the release of dangerous criminals The group was flown out of the United States just hours after getting notice leaving them no chance to contact lawyers who could object in court Cabinet attorneys argued that the men had a history with the immigration system giving them prior opportunities to express a fear of being deported to a country outside their homeland They also explained that immigration agents may have misunderstood the order because the judge did no t specify the time needed between notice and deportation The displaced persons home countries Cuba Laos Mexico Myanmar Vietnam and South Sudan would not take them back according to Todd Lyons the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement who spoke to reporters in Washington just before the court hearing He later mentioned the settlers either came from countries that often do not take back all their deported citizens or had other situations that meant they could not be sent home These represent the true national precaution threats Lyons explained at a news conference Behind him was a display of photos of men he disclosed had been convicted of rape homicide armed robbery and other crimes President Donald Trump and Homeland Precaution Secretary Kristi Noem are working every single day to get these vicious criminals off of American streets and while activist judges are on the other side fighting to get them back onto the United States soil mentioned Tricia McLaughlin a department spokesperson Homeland Safety officers disclosed scant specific details about the deportation flight They revealed the flight left Tuesday with eight people on board and that they remained in the department s custody Wednesday Leaders disclosed they could not disclose the settlers final destination because of safety and operational protection The incident comes amid a sweeping immigration crackdown by the Republican administration which has pledged to deport millions of people who are living in the United States illegally The legal fight is the latest flashpoint as the administration rails against judges whose rulings have slowed the president s policies Lawsuits on immigration issues are everywhere With Congress largely silent or supportive opponents of Trump s agenda have filed hundreds of lawsuits and judges have issued dozens of orders against the administration Immigration has been the preponderance contentious issue There is the mistaken deportation of an immigration who was living in Maryland to a prison in El Salvador as well as Trump s push to swiftly deport alleged Venezuelan gang members without a court review We see activist judges stepping in in a way that we have never seen before to put criminals first and not the American people Madison Sheahan the ICE deputy director commented at the news conference The administration officers insisted that the men had received due process but did not provide any details Immigration rights lawyers have commented that the deportations violated a court order against sending people to countries other than their homelands without first allowing them to argue the removal could put them in danger Murphy had ruled Tuesday that the administration must retain custody and control of those now being removed to South Sudan or to any other third country to ensure the practical feasibility of return if he founds such removals were unlawful Lawyers for immigrants mentioned the administration appeared to have begun deporting people from Myanmar and Vietnam to South Sudan despite a court order restricting removals to other countries The judge left the details to the authorities s discretion but noted he expected the displaced persons will be treated humanely The countries of origin vary Attorneys for the newcomers recounted the judge that immigration functionaries may have sent as a multitude of as a dozen people from several countries to Africa The lawyers say that violates a court order that people have a meaningful opportunity to argue that sending them to a country outside their homeland would threaten their safety The apparent removal of one man from the troubled Southeast Asian nation of Myanmar was established in an email from an immigration official in Texas according to court documents He was informed only in English a language he does not speak well and his lawyers learned of the plan hours before his deportation flight they mentioned A woman also revealed that her husband from Vietnam and up to other people were flown to Africa on Tuesday morning attorneys from the National Immigration Litigation Alliance wrote Murphy who was nominated by Democratic President Joe Biden previously located that any plans to deport people to Libya without notice would clearly violate his ruling which also applies to people who have otherwise exhausted their legal appeals South Sudan says it s unaware of any arrivals South Sudan s police spokesperson Maj Gen James Monday Enoka advised The Associated Press on Wednesday that no foreigners had arrived in the country and that if they do they would be investigated and redeported to their correct country if located not to be South Sudanese Certain countries do not accept deportations from the United States That has led the administration to strike agreements with other countries including Panama to house them The U S has sent Venezuelans to a notorious prison in El Salvador under an th-century wartime law an action being contested in the courts South Sudan has endured repeated waves of violence since gaining independence from Sudan in amid hopes it could use its large oil reserves to bring prosperity to a region long battered by poverty Just weeks ago the country s top U N official warned that fighting between forces loyal to the president and a vice president threatened to spiral again into full-scale civil war The State Department s annual assessment on South Sudan published in April says notable human rights issues include arbitrary killings disappearances torture or inhumane therapy by defense forces and extensive violence based on gender and sexual identity The Homeland Guard Department has given Temporary Protected Status to a small number of South Sudanese already living in the United States shielding them from deportation because conditions were deemed unsafe for return Noem in the past few days extended those protections to November to allow for a more thorough review South Sudan s diplomatic relations with the United States grew tense in April when a deportation row led to the revocation of visas and a ban on South Sudanese nationals The U S is one of the biggest donors to South Sudan s humanitarian aid programs with the total funding in standing at over million Casey released from Boston and Sullivan from Minneapolis Associated Press writers Rebecca Santana in Washington and Elliot Spagat in San Diego contributed to this review Source