US court orders Donald Trump govt to bring back man deported to El Salvador in 'mistake'
The case pertains to Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, who was deported as part of Trump's crackdown on illegal immigrants, in violation of a previous legal ruling.
A federal judge has given the President Donald Trump-led US government time till the end of Monday to bring back a man mistakenly sent to El Salvador after being considered a member of the violent MS-13 gang in what officials are calling an "administrative error."
The case pertains to Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, who was deported as part of Donald Trump's crackdown on illegal immigrants, in violation of a previous legal ruling.
On Friday, US District Judge Paula Xinis ordered that Abrego Garcia be returned from El Salvador’s notorious Terrorism Confinement Center. The judge ruled it was likely that the man had been removed unlawfully from the US despite a 2019 order that halted his deportation to his native country, according to a Bloomberg report.
Abrego Garcia's deportation
Abrego Garcia had been arrested on March 12, and by March 15, he was flown to El Salvador reportedly without following the correct legal procedures. The US government has argued that he is a member of the violent MS-13 gang, presenting a danger to public safety.
However, his attorney denies the accusation, saying that Abrego Garcia is a sheet metal worker, not a gang member, the report mentioned.
“We suggest the judge contact President Bukele because we are unaware of the judge having jurisdiction or authority over the country of El Salvador,” the report qouted as saying White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on Friday, referencing El Salvador’s president, Nayib Bukele.
The order comes reportedly amid a tiff between the government and another federal judge over a case which involves a conflict over deportations of alleged Venezuelan gang members, which the Donald Trump administration had pursued.
The controversy escalated after Donald Trump called for the impeachment of the judge handling that case on social media, prompting a rebuke from Chief Justice John Roberts.
What govt said on Garcia’s case
In filings related to Abrego Garcia’s case cited in the Bloomberg report, the government argued that while wrongful deportations should be avoided, the US must not allow dangerous gang members back onto American streets.
“The individual in question is a member of the brutal MS-13 gang,” said Tricia McLaughlin, Assistant Secretary at the Department of Homeland Security, in a statement. “Whether he is in El Salvador or a detention facility in the US, he will be locked up and off America’s streets.”
Despite the judge’s ruling, the US government filed a notice of appeal shortly after the decision was issued.
Abrego Garcia, whose wife and child are US citizens, filed a lawsuit against the government after being deported alongside over 200 other migrants. Two of the planes in the deportation group carried individuals allegedly connected to the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, a case currently being reviewed by the US Supreme Court.
Abrego Garcia was on a third plane not connected to that law, the government said
