Metro

A federal court order issued by District Judge Stephanie L. Haines on Wednesday has barred authorities from deporting a Venezuelan man suspected of being a member of Tren de Aragua without proper notice and a chance to be heard in court.

But the preliminary injunction by Haines, at least temporarily, does not prevent his removal from the Moshannon Valley Detention facility in Clearfield County to another district.

The individual who goes by the pseudonym of W.J.C.C., through attorney Ian Austin Rose of the Amica Center for Immigration Rights in Washington, requested Haines extend her injunction to bar the plaintiff’s removal out of Pennsylvania’s Western District.

His attorney’s request was based on a statute known as the All Writs Act which, according to the judge, “confers on courts extraordinary powers” to enjoin authorities from removing individuals from the country under the Alien Enemies Act and a Proclamation issued by President Donald Trump in April to remove members of Tren de Aragua from the United States.

Haines explained in her 15-page order issued following the hearing Wednesday that the All Writs Act has been used by the Supreme Court to enjoin removal of individuals from the country under the Alien Enemies Act and the Proclamation, but the nation’s highest court has not used that Act to enjoin movement of individuals from one judicial district to another.

“In light of the foregoing, it is not clear to this Court whether it may enjoin (the Trump Administration) from moving W.J.C.C. to a different judicial district under the Alien Enemies Act at this stage in this case.”

She stated that her hesitancy to bar removal of W.J.C.C. to another jurisdiction should not harm his quest to stay in the United States, noting that under her order in another Tren de Aragua case, she imposed rules that would offer due process protections for the plaintiff.

In that case involving an immigrant, pseudonym A.S.R., Haines ordered federal authorities to provide 21 days’ notice of possible removal and ordered that he have the opportunity to pursue a challenge in court.

With reference to W.J.C.C, Haines stated he has shown that in the absence of a preliminary injunction “he faces a significant risk of removal to another country under the Alien Enemies Act and the Proclamation without sufficient notice and an opportunity to be heard before such removal, and without the possibility of return to this country in the event such removal is eventually found to be unlawful.”

She explained further that under her order, W.J.C.C. will have the opportunity to contact his attorney and to file an appropriate response if the government plans to move him to another judicial district.

Haines’ opinion also stated that W.J.C.C. is challenging his continued detention at Moshannon Valley.

He has requested to be released on bond. That request will be referred to a magistrate district judge for a decision, she stated.

In the A.S.R. case in May, Haines upheld the use of the Alien Enemies Act by the president in his attempts to deport members of Tren de Aragua.

The Alien Enemies Act was enacted in 1798 to provide the president with a way to protect Americans from incursions that may endanger the population.

Trump issued his proclamation this year, designating Tren de Aragua as a Foreign Terrorist Organization and noting its close connection to the Maduro government and the Cartel de los Soles and other groups, with the objective of using illegal narcotics as a weapon “to flood the United States” and to destabilize democratic nations.

Haines, in her A.S.R. opinion, found Tren de Aragua had made a predatory incursion into the country.

But the judge in that case established rules to protect the due process rights of those subject to removal.

In her order Wednesday, Haines ordered similar provisions — instructing the government to provide 21 days’ notice if he is subject to removal under the Alien Enemies Act.

That notice “must clearly articulate that he is subject to removal under the Trump Proclamation,” she explained.

W.J.C.C. must also be given a chance to be heard before a court.

The notice must be in English and Spanish and he must be provided an interpreter if necessary for any hearings.

The order does not bar his removal or release from detention as a result of any hearings under the Immigration and Nationality Act.

Haines is to receive a status update on the W.J.C.C. case no later than June 27.

The government was represented Wednesday by Lee J. Karl of the United States Attorney’s Office in Pittsburgh.