DHS Says It's Not To Be Legally Accountable For Court-Barred Deportations Because They Were Carried Out By DoD

In late March, a federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration from deporting individuals to countries other than their country of origin unless they are first allowed to explain that it would jeopardize their safety.

Despite the ruling by U.S. District Judge Brian E. Murphy suspending such removals, four people were deported to El Salvador while two others were deported to Mexico, an action that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) claims was done by the Defense Department instead.

As noted by Border Report, attorneys for DHS recently said the agency did not violate Murphy's order that prevents people from being deported to third countries, and instead shifted the blame towards the Defense Department, claiming they were the ones carrying out the removals.

As some countries do not accept deportations or flights from the United States, the Trump administration has pursued agreements with other nations—such as Panama and more recently El Salvador—to receive deportees.

Under the agreement with the Trump administration, the U.S. will pay El Salvador approximately $6 million annually to detain deportees, and so far, some 250 people have already been transferred to the Central American country.

According to court documents, Justice Department attorney Mary Larakers said on April 23 that the judicial order blocking such deportations was not violated as the Defense Department is not a defendant in the lawsuit.

In a court filing, Larakers revealed that four people were deported to El Salvador on March 31 —three days after Murphy issued the restraining order— emphasizing that Defense Department personnel, not DHS officials, carried out the removals and that DHS was not present during the flight.

In addition, Larakers said two other people had been removed to Mexico, although one of them was sent three days prior to the ruling being announced while the other one was deported the morning of March 28, several hours before the order was issued.

According to Larakers, the man deported on March 28 was asked by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers "if he was afraid of being returned to Mexico," and he responded that he was not.

The attorney also provided a sworn statement from DHS official Tracy Huettl, who said each of the deportees had been convicted of crimes in the U.S. and were ordered to be removed by an immigration judge.

Before they were deported, the men were put in ICE custody and transferred to the infamous detention center in Guantanamo Bay, where they were held until Defense Department officials transported them to El Salvador, Huettl said in the sworn statement.

Earlier this month, the Trump administration told a news outlet that over 100,000 undocumented immigrants had been deported from the United States since Trump's inauguration on January 20.

And although the specific number of people deported to third countries has not been publicly disclosed, the number surpasses the hundreds.

Earlier this year, in February, Costa Rica accepted a deportation flight with 135 individuals as part of its agreement with the Trump administration. Similarly, despite legal challenges, more than 130 Venezuelan migrants were deported to El Salvador's maximum-security prison in March.