Congress Created a Special Court to Deport Terrorists in 1996. It Just Got Its First Case.

30 years overdue.

Insane, but true.

The Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996, a flawed but fairly sensible piece of legislation, put into places measures like the ability to classify foreign terrorist groups and ban funding to them, as well as keeping terrorists out of America, and it also created the U.S. Alien Terrorist Removal Court (ATRC).

That was 30 years ago.

ATRC had the ability to remove terrorists based on secret evidence, but was never used despite the obvious need for such a thing. Then Judge James Boasberg suggested that the DOJ go to the ATRC instead of going to him and the court just got its first case.

The Justice Department has filed the first-ever case in the U.S. Alien Terrorist Removal Court (ATRC), seeking to remove Nazira Haji Zada, 47, residing in Fort Worth, Texas. Zada, the matriarch of an alien Afghan family, is being removed for her role in a plot to commit an ISIS-inspired mass shooting on Election Day in 2024 for which her son, Abdullah Haji Zada, and son-in-law, Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, were previously arrested and convicted. The application to remove Nazira Haji Zada was filed on July 15. Zada was arrested earlier this week and will appear before the ATRC’s Chief Judge Joan N. Ericksen in Washington, D.C. on Thursday, July 30, at 11:00 a.m.

“Congress created the Alien Terrorist Removal Court three decades ago to remove from the United States alien terrorists who never should have been here in the first place,” said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche. “The allegations in this case show the matriarch of an ISIS-sympathizing family aiding in a plot to launch a mass casualty attack on American voters on Election Day. The Department’s application in this court makes clear that terrorists have no place in the United States of America.”

“This is a historic step asking this court for the first time to remove an individual from the United States who supported a plot by ISIS-sympathizing family members to commit an act of terrorism in America,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “No one should be allowed to come into our country and then betray it. The FBI and our Justice Department partners will not hesitate to use all available resources to protect the American people.”

The Zadas were Afghans brought to the United States.

Is this case going to go well? Probably not. The U.S. Alien Terrorist Removal Court (ATRC) has five judges appointed by Chief Justice Roberts.

If you’re getting a creeping feeling of unease, consider that there’s a reason that Judge Boasberg suggested this notion.

Chief Judge Joan N. Ericksen of ATRC reacted with a notable lack of enthusiasm to being asked to do her job. The media will describe her as a Bush appointee, as are the other 4 judges on the court, but she came out of Hennepin, and the vibe on them is very much that of liberal Republicans.

Here was Judge Ericksen’s response.

“On July 15, 2026, the United States filed an Application to the United States Alien Terrorist Removal Court pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1531 et seq. to remove the respondent in the above-captioned matter from the United States. On July 16, 2026, the Court held a hearing as contemplated by § 1533(c)(1), at which the Court heard attorney argument but no sworn testimony was taken. During the hearing the United States offered to supplement the record with information, and the Court had questions about the nexus that the government alleges between the actions of the respondent and the specific sections and subsections it invokes with respect to those actions. The answers persuaded the Court that the Government could benefit from the opportunity for more thoughtful consideration.”

The court needs a different composition, that much is clear, if it is to be able to do its job.

The ACLU and the usual suspects will cry about scary courts and secret evidence. Hopefully the DOJ has properly prepped its case, and reactivating the court is a no-brainer and forcing it to at least try to do its job is 30 years overdue.