DOJ Drops Appeal of Injunction Blocking Alien Enemies Act Deportations in Central District of California

The Justice Department on Monday dropped its appeal of a preliminary injunction that has blocked the Trump administration from using the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelan nationals linked to the Tren de Aragua gang from the Central District of California.

In June, U.S. District Judge John Holcomb, a Trump appointee, issued the order covering the Los Angeles area and surrounding counties. Holcomb acknowledged that the president has the authority under the 1798 statute to act against the gang as an “invasion” or “predatory incursion,” but he required the government to provide additional notice and an opportunity for the individuals to challenge their removals.

The case involved Darwin Antonio Arevalo Millan. The DOJ maintained he was not being removed under the Alien Enemies Act, yet the court still imposed the broader process requirements. On Monday the DOJ moved under Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 42(b) to dismiss the appeal, stating that it “has elected not to pursue this appeal” before either side filed briefs. Plaintiffs’ counsel did not oppose the motion after a conference on October 28.

By withdrawing the case, the administration avoids a potentially adverse ruling from the Ninth Circuit while the district-court injunction remains in place for the covered individuals. The decision arrives as federal immigration enforcement continues across Southern California.

Earlier this year the Supreme Court cleared the way for ICE “roving patrols” in the Los Angeles area after a lower-court order had restricted stops based on race, language, or location. In the Central District, U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli launched Operation Guardian Angel to obtain federal warrants for criminal illegal aliens held in county jails, bypassing California’s sanctuary policies. The Justice Department has also sued the state over the “No Secret Police Act” and related measures that it argues unconstitutionally interfere with federal officers.

California remains home to well over two million undocumented foreign nationals. Federal data show hundreds of criminal aliens with serious records arrested in the state since the start of the second Trump administration, including those highlighted on DHS’s “Worst of the Worst” webpage. The dropped appeal leaves the Holcomb injunction as an additional procedural hurdle specifically for Alien Enemies Act removals in the Central District, even as broader enforcement operations proceed.