The Trump administration said Monday it planned to hand over several Venezuelan men to Chile. After declaring them as subject to alien enemy law, he stated that it was wartime law, the subject of novel law.
In a statement, Justice Department officials said the three men were declared “an alien enemy” and would be sent to Chile to face criminal charges there. The man is a citizen of Venezuela, one is a citizen of Ecuador and the other is a citizen of Colombia.
Extracing is a long-standing, frequently used process of sending a defendant to file accusations in other countries. By citing alien enemy laws, the Trump administration appears to underscore its aggressive stance on contested legal issues without taking any measures that could be deemed to be breaching a temporary restraining order issued by a federal judge.
As men are being kept reserved to face charges abroad, their cases will be subject to federal court hearings Monday afternoon, unlike the rushing deportation of more than 100 Venezuelans this month.
In an announcement Monday, the administration criticized the judge, James E. Boasberg, who again issued the order. “We would have already removed these violent gang members in Chile if they weren’t for a national injunction imposed by a single judge,” Associate Attorney General Todd Blanche said. He added, “We hope that common sense and justice win.”
The extradition announcement will send more than 100 Venezuelans to a huge prison in El Salvador this month as the courts wrestled with Trump’s calling of law. Civil rights groups challenged deportation, saying the men were not under legitimate procedures and challenged accusations that they were members of Venezuelan gangster Tren de Aragua.
In calling the 1798 law aimed at banishing invaders, the Trump administration argued that the gangs would act in cooperation with the ruling Venezuela party and therefore would be subject to summaries and deportation. Civil rights groups have argued in court that the administration is misusing the law and violating immigrant rights.
The Justice Department said one of the men was currently in a Texas prison, bringing murder and crime associations in Chile for fear and temptation. Two other men hoping to file accusations for the temptation were under US custody, officials said.
