A federal judge on Tuesday blocked the Trump administration from re-detaining Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran national and alleged MS-13 gang member, citing the expiration of his 90-day detention period and the government’s lack of a viable deportation plan.
The ruling represents the latest setback in a long-running legal battle that has repeatedly challenged the administration’s immigration enforcement strategy.
U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis, an Obama appointee, ruled that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents cannot take Abrego Garcia back into custody while federal authorities pursue indefinite and uncertain removal options.
Abrego Garcia, who entered the United States illegally as a teenager, has faced a series of legal and logistical obstacles since his accidental deportation to El Salvador last year.
He was returned to the U.S. in June to face human smuggling charges in Tennessee, where he has pleaded not guilty.
Despite the administration’s insistence on deporting him to African countries, including Liberia, Uganda, Eswatini, and Ghana, the judge noted that Abrego Garcia had consented to relocation in Costa Rica, a country willing to accept him.
The dispute over Abrego Garcia’s relocation highlights the challenges the administration encounters when foreign nations decline to accept individuals subject to deportation.
“Respondents are ENJOINED from taking Petitioner Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia into ICE custody,” Judge Xinis wrote, directing that her order be transmitted immediately to all relevant federal personnel.
She emphasized that the government’s repeated threats to remove Abrego Garcia to countries with no practical acceptance constituted a failure to demonstrate a legitimate plan for deportation, The Daily Caller reported.
The case has proven to be a protracted headache for the Trump administration, which has faced repeated court rebukes over Abrego Garcia’s detention and attempted deportation.
His initial removal to El Salvador, despite a 2019 immigration ruling that blocked such action due to gang-related threats to his family, intensified public scrutiny and legal challenges.
Each judicial rebuke has forced federal authorities to reconsider their approach, illustrating the difficulties of enforcing immigration policy in high-profile cases that attract national attention, according to the Associated Press.
Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, Abrego Garcia’s attorney, argued that immigration detention is not meant to serve as punishment.
“Since Judge Xinis ordered Mr. Abrego Garcia released in mid-December, the government has tried one trick after another to get him re-detained,” he said. “The court recognized that if the government were truly seeking to remove him, Costa Rica would have been the clear, viable option all along.”
While Abrego Garcia has an American wife and child and has lived in Maryland for years, the Trump administration maintains that his presence violates federal immigration law.
The ruling underscores the challenges authorities face when deportation options are limited or politically sensitive and highlights the legal constraints surrounding detention practices in high-profile immigration cases.
The decision is expected to reignite debate over immigration enforcement policies, illustrating the Trump administration’s ongoing struggle to reconcile aggressive deportation priorities with legal compliance.
DHS and ICE have not provided immediate comment on next steps, leaving the logistics of Abrego Garcia’s potential removal uncertain.
As the case continues, it remains a flashpoint in national discussions about immigration law, public safety, and the limits of federal authority in high-profile deportations.
