(AURN News) – He was scheduled to appear for an immigration check-in and risk being detained again, but a federal judge ruled Wednesday that Immigration and Customs Enforcement cannot detain Kilmar Abrego Garcia.
At least for now, U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis ruled that the Trump administration does not have the legal authority to continue holding Abrego, noting there is no final deportation order against him and that his removal is neither reasonably foreseeable nor consistent with due process.
His case has drawn national attention. The government already deported him once to El Salvador through what it described as an “administrative error.” That deportation occurred even though another court had blocked his removal because of credible death threats from gangs in his home country.
The Supreme Court later ordered the government to bring him back, and when he returned over the summer, he was arrested again and accused of human smuggling. He denies the charges and is now fighting them in federal court. Xinis has now ordered that he remain free under strict conditions.
Click play to listen to the report from AURN White House Correspondent Ebony McMorris. For more news, follow @E_N_McMorris & @aurnonline.
