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The administration of United States President Donald Trump has invoked, for the first time in 30 years, a legal procedure that allows for the rapid and almost secret deportation of immigrants considered "foreign terrorists" through a type of specialized court.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has until this Wednesday to submit supplementary information regarding the request made to the Alien Terrorist Removal Court (ATRC), a body that had remained inactive since its creation was approved by the United States Congress in 1996.
The request was made on July 15 without revealing the identity of the person they seek to deport.
One day later, the Washington-based court held a hearing in which the case was presented and the reason why the Trump administration is invoking this court was explained.
The process had gone unnoticed until the site Court Watch detected the court documents.
"The responses (from the DOJ) convinced the Court that the Government could benefit from more careful consideration (of the deportation request)," wrote Judge Lisa Joan Ericksen, presiding judge of the ATRC, in the order that gave the DOJ until this Wednesday to detail its arguments, unless an extension is requested.
The Republican administration's request has drawn the attention of experts because it is the first time this court has been invoked since its inception.
The petition, which will be kept confidential (without public access) and without notifying the individual whose deportation is being sought, could spark a legal battle over an alleged violation of the Constitution.
Concerns regarding cases presented to the specialized court date back to the last century; a 1998 Senate report, led by then-Republican lawmaker Jon Kyl, warned that "an inadequate case" presented before said body "could result in the constitutional invalidation of the ATRC," according to information cited by the specialized site Law Dork.
The DOJ is required to demonstrate that it has probable cause that the foreigner is a terrorist and poses a risk to the national security of the United States, among other requirements.
However, the Trump administration's new strategy comes after it has already lost several deportation cases in U.S. courts, mostly due to a failure to respect due process.
[Publicidad]