US judge orders Trump administration to bring back man deported to El Salvador by mistake

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By Katie Mettler, Maria Sacchetti

Washington Post·

4 Apr, 2025 11:45 PM2 mins to read

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A federal judge ordered the Trump administration to ask El Salvador to release Kilmar Abrego Garcia.
Abrego Garcia was mistakenly deported despite a judge’s order barring his removal due to persecution risks.
Lawyers argued the US is responsible for his return; officials claim they’re powerless as he’s in Salvadoran custody.

A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to ask the Government of El Salvador to release a man US immigration officers mistakenly deported to a mega-prison there last month, in an emergency ruling after his lawyers argued that the man was at imminent risk of death.

US District Judge Paula Xinis in Maryland ordered the Trump administration on Saturday to return Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the husband of a US citizen and longtime Maryland resident, to the United States by no later than 11.59pm on Monday (US time).

As the judge issued her order, supporters outside the courtroom cheered.

Jennifer, whose husband Kilmar Abrego Garcia has been deported by the US, addresses a rally ahead of today's court hearing. Photo / Washington Post

Lawyers had filed an emergency lawsuit seeking his return last month, after officials deported him despite a standing order from an immigration judge barring his removal to his native El Salvador because he most likely faced threats of persecution from gang members.

The Trump administration has acknowledged that federal officers mistakenly deported Abrego Garcia to a prison filled with gang members.

But US officials have argued the United States is powerless to effectuate his return because he is now in Salvadoran custody, and that Abrego Garcia’s lawyers have “not clearly shown” that he would face harm in the prison.

Protesters outside the US District Court in Maryland during Kilmar Abrego Garcia's hearing. Photo / Washington Post

Abrego Garcia’s lawyer argued in court records that the Government’s claims are “outrageous” and alleged the Trump administration has “washed their hands” of him, his wife and their autistic and non-verbal 5-year-old son, a US citizen.

“They’re coming before this court and saying, ‘We’ve tried nothing and we’re all out of options’,” Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg told Judge Xinis, an Obama nominee, at a hearing in US District Court in Greenbelt, Maryland.

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Maria Sacchetti covers immigration for the Washington Post, including US Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the court system. Katie Mettler is a reporter covering state government and criminal justice in Maryland.