Vanished Without a Voice: When Due Process Disappears
Due process is one of the bedrock principles of American law, enshrined in both the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution. The idea is simple but powerful: before the government can take away your life, liberty, or property, it must follow fair procedures. This means giving you notice of what you’re accused of, a real chance to be heard, and a decision by a neutral judge. The Constitution doesn’t say these rights are just for citizens—it says “persons,” meaning everyone in the United States, including immigrants and legal residents.
This principle reaches back over 800 years to the Magna Carta, when King John was forced to accept that even the king must follow the law. In 1215, the Magna Carta established the idea that no one—not even a monarch—could deprive someone of liberty without “the lawful judgment of his peers or by the law of the land.” That ancient promise is the ancestor of our modern due process rights.
What’s Happening Now: Deportations Without Due Process
In recent months, the Trump administration has sent hundreds of immigrants—and even legal residents—straight to a notorious prison in El Salvador, CECOT, without giving them the basic due process protections the Constitution demands. Many were taken with no warning, no hearing, and no chance to speak to a lawyer or contest their removal.
Consider Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, a union worker and father from Maryland with a valid work permit and a court order protecting him from deportation. He was seized by ICE and sent to CECOT without warning, leaving his disabled U.S. citizen child behind. ICE later admitted this was an “administrative error,” but Kilmar remains imprisoned in El Salvador.
Or take Ximena Arias-Cristobal, a 19-year-old college student from Georgia. She was stopped for an alleged traffic violation, arrested, and quickly moved to ICE detention with little time to contact her family or a lawyer. The original reason for her arrest was later found to be untrue, but she still faces deportation.
Andry Hernandez Romero, a gay hairdresser and asylum seeker from Venezuela, was detained and sent to CECOT despite a pending asylum claim and no criminal record. He was identified in El Salvador by journalists, where he suffered abuse and humiliation—all without a hearing or the chance to contest his removal.
Daniel Lozano-Camargo, a 20-year-old Venezuelan with legal protection as an unaccompanied minor, was deported to El Salvador in violation of a federal court order. Only after legal intervention was the administration ordered to facilitate his return.
In some cases, the administration has provided “notice,” but it’s often been just a few hours—sometimes as little as 12 to 24 hours—and in English, with little explanation. The Supreme Court and several federal judges have made it clear: this is not enough. Notice must be meaningful, giving people a real opportunity to contact an attorney, understand the charges, and prepare a defense. A rushed, last-minute form does not meet constitutional standards.
Why These Actions Are Unconstitutional
The Constitution requires that anyone facing deportation must be given:
Notice of the charges and the intent to remove them
A real chance to contact a lawyer
A hearing before a neutral judge, with the opportunity to present evidence and contest the government’s claims
The Trump administration’s actions—abducting people and sending them to a foreign prison without these steps—violate the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment. Courts have repeatedly rebuked the administration for ignoring these requirements, and the Supreme Court has ruled that even noncitizens are entitled to due process before being deported.
What Should Happen Instead
Here’s how it’s supposed to work:
The government must serve a Notice to Appear, explaining why it believes someone should be deported.
The person should have time to find and consult with an attorney.
There must be a hearing before a judge, where the person can present evidence, challenge the government’s case, and ask for relief (like asylum or protection from torture).
Only after this process can a removal order be issued—and even then, there is a right to appeal.
Shortcuts—like giving only a few hours’ notice or skipping the hearing altogether—are not just unfair; they are unconstitutional.
Why It Matters
Due process is not a technicality. It’s the safeguard that keeps the government from acting on impulse or error, and it’s what separates a nation of laws from a nation of rulers. The current practice of disappearing people to foreign prisons without due process is a direct attack on the rule of law—a principle that has protected people’s rights since the days of King John.
If we allow these shortcuts now, it sets a dangerous precedent for everyone. As the courts have said, due process is for all persons—not just citizens, not just those with the right paperwork, but everyone who stands to lose their liberty at the hands of the government.
That ain’t how it’s supposed to work. And we must demand better.
