Appeals court rules Alien Enemies Act doesn’t apply to contemporary gang activity, setting up potential Supreme Court clash.

A federal appeals court dealt a significant blow to the Trump administration’s immigration agenda on Tuesday, ruling that President Donald Trump cannot use a 227-year-old wartime statute to deport members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.

The decision by a three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 was not intended for the modern context of gang-related mass migration, but rather for organized, armed forces posing a direct military threat.

The ruling came in a lawsuit brought by plaintiffs against the administration’s invocation of the law. The majority opinion, written by U.S. Circuit Judge Leslie Sout

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