DOJ seeks to invoke the Alien Terrorist Removal Court for first time since its creation

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has submitted an application to the Alien Terrorist Removal Court (ATRC) to initiate the never-before-used legal process to deport foreign nationals deemed to be terrorists.

The application was submitted on Thursday, July 16^th, and its contents remained sealed. The document’s cover sheet indicates that the information inside is classified. The person the application intends to process has not been publicly identified.

The ATRC was established in 1996 by Congress, which authorized the Chief Justice of the United States to designate five U.S. district court judges to review applications for illegal immigrant terrorists to be quickly removed from the country. However, until this week, the court has not received an application from the Attorney General in 30 years and has not conducted deportation proceedings.

The Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA) was signed by former President Bill Clinton in 1996 in response to the 1995 Oklahoma City Bombing. At the time, American extremist Timothy McVeigh, aided by Terry Nichols, detonated a makeshift bomb in front of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

If an application is approved, the court will need to hold a public removal hearing where the government bears the burden of proving that the individual is an “alien terrorist.”

8 U.S. Code defines an alien terrorist as any non-citizen who has engaged or is reasonably likely to engage in any terrorist activity.

The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) defines terrorist activity as any unlawful act including:

• Hijacking or sabotaging an aircraft, vessel or vehicle;
• Seizing, detaining, or threatening to kill or injure another person to compel a third person or government to an action;
• Assassination;
• A violent act upon an internationally protected person;
• Using biological, chemical, or nuclear weapons with intent to harm;
• Material support to a certified Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) or to any individuals the actor reasonably should know has committed or plans to commit terrorist acts.

The DOJ’s filing may indicate an escalation in President Donald Trump’s administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration.

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