by Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, the immigrant who was wrongfully deported to El Salvador, was brought back to the United States last month to face criminal charges, but an angry federal judge indicated on Friday that she might issue an injunction preventing him from being forcibly removed from the country once more.
Judge Paula Xinis, who is presiding over the initial civil case resulting from the wrongful deportation, made the suggestion during a hearing in the Federal District Court in Maryland. She blasted the Justice Department for seriously undermining the bonds of trust that the courts typically grant to government attorneys.
Judge Xinis, who has repeatedly chastised the administration for the way it has handled Mr. Abrego Garcia’s case over the previous few months, stated that this has been the procedure since Day 1. In my opinion, you have damaged the presumption of regularity by taking it.
At a series of hearings this week, Mr. Abrego Garcia’s attorneys have voiced their own frustrations and asked Judge Xinis to allow them the opportunity to contest any attempts by the Trump administration to re-deport their client in the event that he is released from custody in his criminal case and turned over to immigration officials.
In the event that Mr. Abrego Garcia is released from criminal custody—which might occur as early as Wednesday, when a separate hearing in his criminal case is held in Nashville—the attorneys request that Judge Xinis prohibit the government from initiating removal proceedings for two or three business days.
Initially, the Justice Department promised to try Mr. Abrego Garcia for the immigrant smuggling charges brought against him in Nashville. However, more recently, department attorneys have hinted that the Department of Homeland Security would try to deport him before a trial, possibly to a third country where he has never resided.
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