A federal judge on Friday ordered the Trump administration to return Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland resident deported to El Salvador in March, after finding the government acted illegally in removing him from the United States despite an active court order protecting him from removal.
"This was an illegal act," U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis said during a hearing in Greenbelt, Maryland. She instructed the administration to bring Abrego Garcia back to the U.S. by 11:59 p.m. Monday, setting the stage for a potential confrontation between the judiciary and the White House.
The Department of Justice acknowledged this week that Abrego Garcia, 29, was deported in error, attributing the action to an "administrative error." However, the government argued it lacked the authority to facilitate his return from a foreign country. Xinis rejected that argument, questioning DOJ attorney Erez Reuveni directly: "Why can't the United States get Mr. Abrego Garcia back?"
Abrego Garcia, who had lived in Beltsville, Md., legally and held a work permit, was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers on March 12. He was deported just three days later aboard a flight to El Salvador, part of a broader deportation effort targeting alleged gang members. His deportation occurred despite a 2019 immigration court ruling granting him protection under the U.N. Convention Against Torture.
At Friday's hearing, Reuveni admitted, "That is not in dispute," when pressed on whether the government had legal authorization to remove him. Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, representing Abrego Garcia and his U.S. citizen wife and son, stated, "They admit they had no legal authorization to remove him to El Salvador. The public interest lies in the government following the law."
Court filings indicate that Abrego Garcia fled El Salvador as a teenager to escape pressure from rival gangs. His 2019 asylum claim alleged that the Barrio 18 gang had extorted his family's pupusa business and threatened him for refusing to join. A U.S. immigration judge found him deportable but barred his removal based on the risk of torture if returned.
ICE officials said in a filing that Abrego Garcia was mistakenly placed on a deportation flight processed under standard procedures, not under President Trump's March 15 invocation of the Alien Enemies Act to expedite removals of suspected gang affiliates from Venezuela and Central America.
Abrego Garcia was one of hundreds deported that week, with two flights carrying individuals deported under the 1798-era statute and a third-including Abrego Garcia-transporting others processed through existing immigration channels.
Minutes before Friday's hearing, a small rally formed outside the federal courthouse in Maryland. Protesters wearing pink vests labeled "Rapid Response Choir" chanted for Abrego Garcia's release, with several remaining outside through the court proceedings.
