Donald Trump Uses Alien Terrorist Removal Court For First Time Ever
Newsweek · C · trust 62/100
0 Share Newsweek is a Trust Project member See more of our trusted coverage when you search. Prefer Newsweek on Google to see more of our trusted coverage when you search. President Donald Trump has made use of the Alien Terrorist Removal Court for the first time since its inception, according to court documents reviewed by Newsweek.
According to a court order posted on the court’s website , the United States government submitted the court’s first application on July 15 seeking the removal of an individual from the United States.
The government's application remains under seal and that the court’s order does not identify the individual in question.
According to the Federal Judiciary Center (FJC), the court had not received an application in the 30 years since it was created, at least not until now. The news was first reported by Court Watch .
Newsweek has contacted a spokesperson for the court and the Department of Justice via messages sent through online contact forms. The White House has been contacted for comment via email.
The case represents a significant escalation in the Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigration , at a time when the tactics used by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have come under renewed criticism after three people died during encounters with federal immigration agents within a week.
The order, dated July 16, says the United States filed an application on July 15 to “remove the respondent in the above-captioned matter from the United States.”
The court’s chief judge Joan N. Ericksen wrote in the order that the court held a hearing on July 16 where it heard attorney arguments “but no sworn testimony was taken.”
Ericksen wrote that the government’s lawyers had offered “to supplement the record” after the court raised questions about the connection between the respondent's alleged conduct and the statutory provisions cited in the application.
“The answers persuaded the Court that the Government could benefit from the opportunity for more thoughtful consideration,” he wrote.
The judge ordered the government to submit additional factual and legal analysis to “satisfy its statutory obligations.”
“Absent a request for additional time, any supplemental information shall be submitted on or before July 22, 2026,” the judge wrote.
The Alien Terrorist Removal Court was created by Congress to allow the government to seek the removal of noncitizens accused of terrorism-related activities while protecting classified intelligence from public disclosure.
The provisions for the court were included in the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996.
The law authorized the chief justice of the United States to designate five U.S. district court judges to “review applications for the removal from the United States of alien terrorists,” according to the FJC, the research and education agency of the judicial branch of the U.S. government.
The FJC’s page on the court notes that as of 2026, the court “had never received an application from the Attorney General for the removal of an alien terrorist" and therefore had never conducted proceedings.
The law allows the attorney general to submit an application under seal seeking the removal of a suspected alien terrorist.
A single judge reviews the application and may grant it, if it is determined that the government has correctly identified the individual “as an alien terrorist present in the United States and that removal under other available legal means would pose a risk to national security,” according to the FJC.
If an application is approved, the court must hold a public removal hearing where the accused has the right to legal representation, while the government bears the burden of proving that the person is an "alien terrorist" under the statute.
The government is also required to prepare an unclassified summary of any classified evidence so the accused can prepare a defense. If the government meets its burden of proof at the hearing, the court will order the person removed from the U.S.
The attorney general may appeal a judge’s denial of an application, and either the attorney general or the accused may appeal the judge’s decision after a removal hearing, according to the FJC. Appeals are to be made to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
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