Judge Orders Release Of Kilmar Abrego García from ICE Custody

A federal judge has ordered the immediate release of Kilmar Abrego García from immigration detention, marking a major development in a years-long legal battle over his deportation. In a ruling issued Thursday, U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis said Abrego García had been “re-detained, again without lawful authority,” noting that the government cannot remove him from the United States without a valid removal order, ABC News reports.

Abrego García, a native of El Salvador who lived in Maryland with his wife and children, was deported in March to the country’s CECOT mega-prison despite a 2019 court order blocking his removal due to documented fears of persecution. The Trump administration justified the deportation by labeling him an MS-13 member, an allegation he has consistently denied.

He was returned to the U.S. in June to face human smuggling charges in Tennessee, to which he has pleaded not guilty. After briefly being released to his brother in Maryland, immigration authorities detained him again, transferring him to a facility in Pennsylvania.

The Department of Homeland Security sharply criticized the judge’s decision, calling it “naked judicial activism” in a statement posted online.

Judge Xinis’ 31-page order outlined what she described as a series of flawed government attempts to deport Abrego García to multiple countries, including Uganda, Eswatini, and Ghana—none of which were viable options. She also noted that Costa Rica had reaffirmed its willingness to receive him.

Xinis instructed the government to provide the exact time and location of Abrego García’s release and to notify the court by 5 p.m. Thursday. She also directed that he resume following the pretrial release conditions already set in his criminal case.