Overview
- U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis enjoined ICE from taking Abrego Garcia back into custody, ruling further detention would violate due process.
- The court found the government lacks a viable removal plan and has not secured the travel documents needed to deport him in the foreseeable future.
- Xinis criticized officials for disregarding Costa Rica’s repeated offer to accept Abrego Garcia while pursuing unlikely removals to Uganda, Eswatini, Ghana, and Liberia.
- Abrego Garcia was mistakenly deported to El Salvador in March 2025 and was returned to the United States in June following court intervention and public pressure.
- He remains on court-imposed release conditions as he faces federal human-smuggling charges in Tennessee, to which he has pleaded not guilty.