Federal Judge Orders Immediate Release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia

A federal judge directed the immediate release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody on Thursday.

U.S. District Court Judge Paula Xinis, appointed by Obama, stated in her opinion that since Abrego Garcia’s return from wrongful detention in El Salvador, he has been held again without lawful authority.

During a hearing in November, Judge Xinis pointed out that the immigration judge who had previously granted him withholding of removal to El Salvador in 2019 didn’t actually specify a deportation order. Abrego Garcia had been in ICE detention to facilitate third-country removal without proper legal backing.

In response, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin criticized the ruling, calling it “naked judicial activism” and claiming the order has no valid legal foundation. She emphasized that they would vigorously contest this in court.

Abrego Garcia was mistakenly deported to El Salvador in March, which is notable because it’s the only country he couldn’t be sent back to. He returned to the U.S. in June to confront human smuggling charges in Tennessee.

Even if the government attempted to deport him, Judge Xinis noted that they had failed to take steps towards removal to Costa Rica, the country that had offered to accept him. Instead, they informed him of expulsion attempts to Uganda, Eswatini, Ghana, and finally Liberia.

“This time, when the Court sought details regarding Liberia and Costa Rica to evaluate the validity of Abrego Garcia’s claims, the responses were misleading,” Xinis remarked. She mentioned that the government claimed Liberia was the only feasible removal option and suggested that Costa Rica no longer wished to receive him.