By Luc Cohen and Ted Hesson
NEW YORK (Reuters) – A U.S. judge canceled a hearing scheduled for Tuesday over whether he would to impose a longer-lasting block on President Donald Trump’s deportations of Venezuelans under a 1798 law historically used only in wartime, citing the U.S. Supreme Court decision lifting his temporary ban on such removals.
The Supreme Court on Monday night granted the administration’s request to end Washington-based U.S. Judge James Boasberg’s March 15 order that had temporarily blocked the summary deportations under Trump’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act while litigation in the case continues. The unsigned 5-4 ruling was powered by the court’s conservative justices.
In ending Boasberg’s temporary restraining orders barring such deportations issued on March 15 and March 28 and lasting two weeks apiece, the Supreme Court said detainees should have contested their deportations in Texas, where they were confined, rather than in Washington.
In a brief written order on Tuesday, Boasberg asked lawyers for the detained Venezuelan migrants to tell him by April 16 whether they intended to move forward with their bid for a longer-lasting preliminary injunction.
Lawyers with the American Civil Liberties Union, who are representing the migrants, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
(Reporting by Luc Cohen in New York and Ted Hesson in Washington; Editing by Mark Porter)
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