A federal judge in Tennessee ordered the release of Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, a Maryland resident who was wrongly deported to El Salvador, as he awaits federal trial on human smuggling charges.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes on Sunday denied the federal government’s motion to detain Abrego Garcia before his trial, the Associated Press reported. Holmes scheduled a hearing to discuss the conditions of his release for Wednesday.
Holmes wrote in her ruling that determining Abrego Garcia’s release was “little more than an academic exercise” because he will likely be detained again by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The federal government filed a motion to appeal Holmes’ decision and asks her to suspend her release order, the Associated Press reported.
Abrego Garcia’s smuggling charges come from a 2022 traffic stop for speeding in Tennessee, where he drove a vehicle with nine passengers. He was left with a warning, though officers suspected possible smuggling at the time, the Associated Press reported.
Abrego Garcia pleaded not guilty to the smuggling charges on June 13.
He was detained in 2019 by Prince George’s County Police for allegations he was an MS-13 gang member and later turned over to ICE custody.
[Mistakenly deported Maryland man returned to U.S. to face human smuggling charges]
After a confidential informant alleged Abrego Garcia was part of MS-13’s New York chapter, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security began deportation proceedings against him, the Associated Press reported. But Abrego Garcia never lived in New York.
An immigration judge protected Abrego Garcia from deportation to El Salvador later in 2019 because he faced a “clear probability of persecution” if returned to the country, according to court documents.
ICE agents detained Abrego Garcia in March without an arrest warrant and began deportation proceedings against him, despite the order protecting him from removal to El Salvador, according to court documents.
U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis ordered Trump’s administration in April to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return to the U.S. In a memo attached to a ruling, she wrote his deportation came “without notice, legal justification or due process.”
The U.S. Supreme Court agreed on April 10 that the federal government must facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return to the U.S.
Holmes also wrote in her Sunday ruling the government failed to prove Abrego Garcia posed danger to the community or that he would interfere with proceedings after a possible release.
“Overall, the Court cannot find from the evidence presented that Abrego’s release clearly and convincingly poses an irremediable danger to other persons or to the community,” Holmes wrote.
Acting U.S. attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee Rob McGuire argued earlier in June that ICE’s attempt to deport Abrego Garcia warranted keeping him in custody.
A date for Abrego Garcia’s federal trial on smuggling charges has not been set, the Associated Press reported.
