NEW YORK (Reuters) – President Donald Trump’s administration exceeded the scope of an 18th-century wartime law in using it to deport some Venezuelan migrants, a federal judge in Texas said on Thursday in barring the administration from using it to speed up deportations.

In a 36-page opinion, U.S. District Judge Fernando Rodriguez ruled that the Trump administration could not rely on the Alien Enemies Act to detain or deport alleged members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.

“The historical record renders clear that the President’s invocation of the AEA through the Proclamation exceeds the scope of the statute and is contrary to the plain, ordinary meaning of the statute’s terms,” wrote Rodriguez, who was appointed by Trump during his first term.

The Justice Department, which represents the administration in court, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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(Reporting by Luc Cohen in New York and Ted Hesson in Washington, D.C.; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)