A Maryland father of three has been deported from the United States without trial in a wave of deportations without due process by the Trump administration.
Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a 29-year-old man married to a U.S. citizen, was arrested by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents on March 12 and told that his “immigration status has changed.” Soon after, Abrego Garcia was forced onto a plane and deported to the Terrorism Confinement Center in El Salvador, a prison notoriously violent and overcrowded. Abrego Garcia, however, had protected status from deportation due to previous court orders.
In the spring of 2019, Abrego Garcia was detained by ICE agents under accusations of affiliation with the gang MS-13. These accusations were not found to hold merit in court, with his Notice to Appear instead focused only on his previous crossing of the U.S. border without legal status, as he fled gang violence against his family. In the fall of 2019, an immigration judge granted Abrego Garcia special protection from removal to El Salvador, agreeing with his assertion that he would be endangered by gangs there.
U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis has required daily updates from the Trump administration on what is being done regarding Abrego Garcia’s status. On March 21, in a response to a lawsuit over Abrego Garcia’s return, the Trump administration wrote, “ICE was aware of his protection from removal,” but he “was removed to El Salvador because of an administrative error.”
Justice Department attorney Erez Revueni said in court on April 4, “We concede he should not have been removed to El Salvador.”
Revueni was placed on leave for that statement.
Attorney General Pam Bondi deflected responsibility for Abrego Garcia’s return from El Salvador on April 14, claiming, “That’s not up to us… If they wanted to return him, we would facilitate it. Meaning, provide a plane.”
As of press time, the president of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, has stated, “The question is preposterous. How can I smuggle a terrorist into the United States?”
Abrego Garcia’s lawyers have denied the allegation that he is a gang member, saying that the U.S. has presented no credible evidence. Currently, Garcia has no criminal past nor gang affiliation proven by the court.
This deportation, however, has not been the only action of the Trump administration facing backlash and legal scrutiny for denying residents their right to due process. Columbia University graduate Mahmoud Khalil, legally in the U.S. with a green card, was arrested by ICE agents on March 8 after the U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio ordered the revocation of his student visa and green card. Khalil, who engaged in pro-Palestinian protests at the university last year, was accused of “activities aligned with Hamas.” Despite being taken from his home and transferred by the Department of Homeland Security to a Louisiana detention facility 1,400 miles away pending deportation, no evidence was provided, and Khalil was not given a trial.
As of press time, a court order by Amy Greer from Dratel & Lewis, the Center for Constitutional Rights, and CLEAR is blocking his deportation. Many point out that this action by the Trump administration threatens free speech as a whole and that the right to protest is a vital and foundational freedom that the United States was founded upon.
