Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall is among three attorneys general leading a brief to the U.S. Supreme Court defending actions to combat the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.
Tren de Aragua, a transnational criminal organization that started in prison more than a decade ago, spread to the United States as illegal immigrants flooded the southern border. Members of the violent gang have exploited other Venezuelans who have migrated to the United States.
In addition to the three states leading the charge, 24 other attorneys general signed the filing calling for a stay of a district court's recent temporary restraining order that halts President Trump's actions to combat the gang.
RELATED: AG Marshall defending Trump actions addressing Venezuelan gang, deporting members to El Salvador
"This is about more than just one policy—this is about preserving the President's ability to enforce the law," said Marshall. "If the judiciary can strip the executive branch of its power to control immigration, it won't stop there. The very foundation of our constitutional system is at risk if courts overstep their bounds and substitute their own policy preferences for the rule of law."
The gang, also known as "TdA," has been designated a foreign terrorist organization.
"The experiences of the States bolster and support the President's findings on this point, as the States and their citizens have been subject to escalating acts of violence committed by TdA," the briefing reads. "In the past year alone, TdA members have murdered American citizens, seized property, and violently attacked police officers."
South Carolina, Virginia and Alabama led the brief. Other states signing on were Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming.
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