Judge rules US must facilitate return of Venezuelans deported to Salvadoran prison

Verónica Egui Brito, Miami Herald on Feb 12, 2026

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A federal judge ordered the Trump administration on Thursday to take concrete steps to facilitate the return to the U.S. of Venezuelan men who were deported to a Salvadoran mega prison after he ruled they were denied their constitutional rights in U.S. immigration proceedings.

In March 2025, the United States deported hundreds of Venezuelans under an 18th Century law, the Alien Enemies Act, and sent them to the maximum‑security CECOT prison in El Salvador, a facility notorious for harsh, dangerous conditions, without an opportunity to challenge their removal in court. They were labeled as members of the Tren de Aragua gang based on minimal or questionable evidence, even though most had no known U.S. criminal convictions.

After more than three months imprisoned in El Salvador, the Venezuelan men were freed on July 18 as part of a prisoner‑exchange agreement between the United States, Venezuela and El Salvador. Under the deal, all Venezuelans deported from the U.S. were flown to Venezuela in exchange for the release of 10 U.S. citizens and permanent residents who had been detained by Venezuelan authorities

In a seven-page ruling, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg in Washington, D.C., reaffirmed an earlier finding that the government had violated the due process rights of the Venezuelans by deporting them without adequate legal process, leaving them unable to challenge their deportations through a habeas corpus petition, the constitutional right to contest unlawful detention.

Rather than leaving the deported individuals stranded abroad without legal recourse, Boasberg directed the government to facilitate their return from third countries if they wish to pursue their habeas claims. That includes providing travel letters and parole into U.S. custody at a port of entry, as well as returning the men’s passports and other identification documents that had been retained by U.S. authorities.

What began as the profiling of Venezuelan men with tattoos, who were presumed by authorities to be gang members, quickly became a humanitarian crisis. Experts on the Tren de Aragua gang told the Miami Herald that using tattoos as the sole indicator of membership could lead to miscarriages of justice. Of the Venezuelans sent to CECOT, at least 50 were later shown to have legally entered the United States and had no apparent criminal records, according to a report by the Libertarian Cato Institute.

In his ruling, Boasberg cited the Supreme Court’s decision in Noem v. Abrego Garcia, in which the high court said that someone wrongfully removed must be afforded the process they were denied.

Kilmar Abrego García was wrongfully deported to the Salvadoran prison in March 2025 despite a 2019 immigration judge’s order that he must not be sent to El Salvador because he faced credible fear of persecution there. In his lawsuit, Abrego García challenged the government’s actions, arguing he was removed without any procedural protections, such as notice or a hearing. Courts agreed that the administration had violated his constitutional rights, and ultimately he was returned to the U.S. in June 2025.

An investigation by Human Rights Watch and Cristosal, a Central American human rights organization, found that the Venezuelans deported to El Salvador suffered systematic abuse, including daily beatings, sexual assault and starvation. The reports also documented overcrowded cells, poor ventilation, lack of medical care, and prolonged solitary confinement. Every former detainee interviewed by the organizations reported enduring repeated physical and psychological abuse during their time at CECOT.

For many of those who returned home, the experience left them asking difficult questions about their futures, some of the deported Venezuelans told the Herald: Does the ruling mean they will be able to return to the U.S. and receive legal status, such as a green card or citizenship? And will there be any compensation for the suffering they endured after being sent to a dangerous foreign prison?