Federal judge halts Trump admin from ending protected status for some Venezuelans

A California judge on Friday halted the Trump administration from revoking temporary protective status (TPS) for 5,000 Venezuelans. 

U.S. District Judge Edward E. Chen, an Obama appointee, said Friday the White House would have to uphold the TPS extension granted by former Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas in January.

His successor, Kristi Noem, attempted to erode the protective status for Venezuelans in February by terminating a Biden-era order extending their ability to obtain updated paperwork, including work permits and other documents. 

“According to Plaintiffs, Secretary Noem exceeded her statutory authority when she
effectively canceled, on February 3, 2025, TPS-related documentation that had already been
issued based on the extension to October 2, 2026. Plaintiffs’ position is meritorious. Nothing in
the TPS statute allows the Secretary to take such action,” Chen wrote in the order.

Chen later wrote, “The extension had real world consequences: it was effective, even if only for a brief period of time.”

The Supreme Court previously issued an emergency order allowing the Trump administration to strip legal protections for migrants. 

However, their ruling does not block legal challenges contesting Noem’s decision. Attorneys for the plaintiffs said her decision was racially discriminatory.

The Homeland Security Secretary also ended deportation protections for Haitians earlier this year.

In recent months, President Trump and his team have been named in a number of court battles initiated by plaintiffs who allege the administration has undertaken wrongful deportations and denied due process to individuals who have been removed. 

Throughout the campaign trail, Trump promised to carry out the largest deportation in the country’s history, but the rate of removals still remains lower than the Biden administration’s numbers.