A federal judge on Monday temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to deport alleged MS-13 gang member Kilmar Abrego Garcia to Uganda.
U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis, an Obama appointee, ruled that the Salvadoran migrant must first be given an opportunity to contest his removal, The Washington Post reported.
ICE Arrest and DHS Statement
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained Abrego Garcia at its Maryland field office just hours before the ruling, following his release from a Tennessee jail where he faced human smuggling charges.
“Today, ICE law enforcement arrested Kilmar Abrego Garcia and are processing him for deportation,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said.
“President Trump is not going to allow this illegal alien, who is an MS-13 gang member, human trafficker, serial domestic abuser, and child predator to terrorize American citizens any longer.”
Defense Argument
Abrego Garcia’s attorney, Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, said the ruling ensures his client will have a chance to exercise due process.
“I expect there’s going to be a status conference very promptly, and we’re going to ask for an interim order that he not be deported, pending his due process rights to contest deportation to any particular country,” Sandoval-Moshenberg said.
Previous Deportation and Offers
The Trump administration deported Abrego Garcia to El Salvador in June along with 260 other alleged gang members under the 18th-century Alien Enemies Act, which allows expedited deportations without hearings.
Court filings revealed Abrego Garcia was also offered deportation to Costa Rica if he admitted to transporting illegal migrants — a charge tied to a 2022 Tennessee traffic stop where he was found with eight passengers and no luggage.
