Trump's Trials - Judge rules there is 'probable cause' to hold U.S. in contempt over deportations

Episode Date: April 17, 2025

A federal judge has ruled that there is "probable cause" to find the Trump administration in contempt for violating his order last month to immediately pause deportations under the Alien Enemies Act.Support NPR and hear every episode of Trump's Terms sponsor-free with NPR+. Sign up at plus.npr.org.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

It's Trump's Terms from NPR. I'm Scott Dettrell. We're going to be doing all sorts of things nobody ever thought was even possible. It's going to be a very aggressive first hundred days of the new Congress. An unpredictable, transformative next four years. The United States is going to take off like a rocket ship. Each episode we bring you NPR's coverage of President Trump acting on his own terms. And that means sometimes doing things that no American president has tried before. NPR is covering it all in stories

like the one you are about to hear right after this. I'm Michelle Martin. And I'm A. Martinez. The Trump administration demonstrated quote, willful disregard for a court's order and is likely in criminal contempt. That's what US District Judge James Boesberg ruled yesterday. He said the government ignored his order last month

to turn back two planes carrying Venezuelan migrants to a prison in El Salvador. It's just one of the high profile cases in which federal judges are trying to hold the Trump administration accountable for flouting judicial orders. NPR's Adrian Florida joins us now. So tell us what the judge said in this ruling.

Well, Judge Boesberg said that government officials could have obeyed his order to turn those planes around, but chose not to. A little context day, on March 15th, President Trump said he'd invoked the Wartime Alien Enemies Act of 1798, so he could quickly deport members of the Venezuelan gang Trenver Agua without hearings.

That same day, officials in Texas loaded dozens of men onto two airplanes. The ACLU though found out what was happening and sued because it said these men needed to be allowed to challenge their deportations. During an emergency hearing in DC that evening, Judge Boasberg told the government lawyers that if those planes had already left, they needed to turn them around. That didn't happen though. The planes landed in El Salvador and the country's president locked the men up. Boasberg in his ruling yesterday said the government

could have returned the planes because they took off during his hearing. And he wrote that quote, the constitution does not tolerate willful disobedience of judicial orders. Okay, so then what does the ruling mean now for the Trump administration? Well, Boasberg gave the government till next week to doience of judicial orders. Okay, so then what does the ruling mean now for the Trump administration? Well, Boesberg gave the government till next week

to do one of two things. He said it could, in his words, reassert custody of the men it deported so they can challenge their deportations in federal courts. They are still in that Salvadoran prison and many of their families have denied that they are gang members. If the government chooses not to do that though,

Boesberg said, then he wants the names of the specific government officials who ignored his order. He said he will force them to testify, and if necessary, he will appoint a lawyer to criminally prosecute them for contempt, and they could face fines or prison. Okay, so how is the White House responding?

Well, the Justice Department called the ruling a judicial power grab and has appealed. A White House spokesman said the president is committed to ensuring that quote criminal illegal migrants are no longer a threat to Americans. On the other side of this case the ACLU and Democracy Forward, the two groups who brought it, are celebrating the ruling. This is Sky Perryman of democracy forward. This ruling, it's clear that we've seen the government has acted in blatant disregard for the judiciary. Treating court orders as if they are optional. And that's not how our

systems of checks and balances works. She said her team will continue moving the case forward in courts to ensure that everyone in the US, including immigrants, gets due process. Yeah. And this is not the only case where judges are trying to force the Trump administration to forward in courts to ensure that everyone in the US, including immigrants, gets due process. Yeah. And this is not the only case where judges are trying to force the Trump administration to obey court orders. Judge in Maryland also demanded an explanation for why it's ignoring her order to help bring back a man mistakenly sent to El Salvador despite having legal status.

So what's the big picture here, Adrian? Well, members of the Trump administration, they have said that they are not going to let courts get in their way of carrying out the president's priorities. Yesterday's ruling by Judge Boasberg, though, is the first time a judge has clearly said that government officials will be punished for not obeying the courts. If they still refuse, that is where legal experts say that we will have a full-blown constitutional crisis. That's NPR's Adrian Florida.

Thanks a lot. Thank you, Ian. Before we wrap up, a reminder, you can find more coverage of the Trump administration on the NPR Politics Podcast, where you can hear NPR's political reporters break down the day's biggest political news, with new episodes every weekday afternoon. And thanks, as always, to our NPR Plus supporters who hear every episode of the show without sponsor messages. You can learn more at plus.npr.org. I'm Scott Detro.

Thanks for listening to Trump's Terms from NPR.