A federal judge found the Trump administration violated his order from last month blocking officials from deporting foreign nationals to countries that aren't their own without giving them a chance to challenge their removal.
Boston-based federal judge Brian E. Murphy strongly rebuked the administration Wednesday when he ruled on an emergency motion filed by men who may have been deported to South Sudan, a violence-plagued nation they had never visited. It's not clear whether the court will impose any punishment on Donald Trump's officials, reported the New York Times.
“The department’s actions in this case are unquestionably violative of this court’s order," Murphy said.
Homeland security officials told the judge that eight migrants had been deported Tuesday on a flight to a third country but refused to say where they were sent, and Murphy noted the government had given them less than 24 hours notice that they were being removed, which the judge said was “plainly insufficient.”
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The Joe Biden-appointed judge warned the violation could result in a finding of criminal contempt, and he asked DHS officials whether it was possible to hold immediate hearings for the men while they remained in U.S. custody overseas.
Two sources told the Times the flight carrying the men – who DHS said are were citizens of Burma, Cuba, Laos, Mexico, South Sudan and Vietnam – had landed in east African nation of Djibouti and that U.S. military personnel were standing by to assist in their detention, if necessary.
DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin would say only that South Sudan was not the flight's final destination.