A federal appeals court on Thursday lifted an emergency stay on United States District Judge James Boasberg’s order concerning due process rights for illegal immigrants deported to a maximum security prison in El Salvador.
Earlier this year, Boasberg issued a preliminary injunction ordering the Trump administration to “facilitate” due process protections for the Venezuelan nationals deported to El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement Center, otherwise known as CECOT. The federal government quickly appealed the order, winning the emergency stay.
The court’s most recent action effectively sent the case back to Boasberg for further action, citing changed circumstances. The court said it is expressing “no opinion on what kind of class relief, if any,” may be afforded to the CECOT plaintiffs. Fox News reported on Thursday’s order.
Last month, El Salvador released an estimated 250 Venezuelan deportees in its custody in exchange for Venezuela’s release of 10 jailed Americans. The prisoner swap was made in a deal between the U.S. and the two Latin American countries.
The appeals court said the prisoner exchange, which constituted a “fundamental change in circumstances,” influenced its decision to leave the case to Boasberg.
