Trump Administration Faces Contempt Over Deportation Flights Defying Court Order

Deportation flights launched mid-hearing? A judge calls it “gleeful defiance” as Trump’s team faces contempt over ignoring court orders. Here’s what happened.

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Venezuelan migrants deported from the United States peer through their plane window as they arrive at Simon Bolivar International Airport in Maiquetia, Venezuela, Monday, March 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
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A federal judge has found probable cause to hold the Trump administration in criminal contempt of court after deportation flights to continued despite a direct court order to halt them.

Judge James Boasberg said the administration tried to outrun the legal system—even launching deportation flights during the March 15 court hearing.

Those aboard were deported under Trump’s newly invoked Alien Enemies Act—a wartime law not used since World War II—targeting alleged gang members from . But the plaintiffs say their clients were not gang members and that they were ripped off without due process to avoid a Salvadoran notorious for human rights violations.

It didn’t stop there. Secretary of State retweeted a mocking post from El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele reading, “Oopsie. Too Late.”

Boasberg called the administration’s actions “gleeful defiance.” The administration has until April 23 to reverse the damage or name names identifying who made the call to ignore the judge.


Click play to listen to the report from AURN White House Correspondent Ebony McMorris. For more news, follow @E_N_McMorris & @aurnonline.

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AURN NEWS WITH EBONY MCMORRIS