Supreme Court rules U.S. must facilitate return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia from El Salvador
Published Thu, Apr 10 20256:52 PM EDTUpdated 2 Min Ago, Dan Mangan
The Supreme Court upheld a lower court order that the Trump administration “facilitate” the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland man who was forcibly deported to El Salvador.
Abrego Garcia is being held in prison in El Salvador.
But the Supreme Court in its decision told a federal district court judge in Maryland to clarify his order that the administration “effectuate” the return of Abrego Garcia.
The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a lower court order that the Trump administration must “facilitate” the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland man who was forcibly and wrongly deported to El Salvador, where he is in prison.
But the Supreme Court in its decision told a federal district court judge in Maryland to clarify his order last week that the administration “effectuate” the return of Abrego Garcia.
The Trump administration had opposed the order to return Abrego Garcia even after acknowledging that he “was subject to a withholding order forbidding his removal to El Salvador, and that the removal to El Salvador was therefore illegal,” the Supreme Court noted in its ruling.
Abrego Garcia, who is a native of El Salvador, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Maryland on March 12, and was deported three days later.
Salvadoran prison guards escort alleged members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua and the MS-13 gang recently deported by the U.S. government to be imprisoned in the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) prison, as part of an agreement with the Salvadoran government, in Tecoluca, El Salvador, in this handout image obtained March 31, 2025. Secretaria de Prensa de la Presidencia/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES
Salvadoran prison guards escort alleged members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua and the MS-13 gang recently deported by the U.S. government to be imprisoned in the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) prison, as part of an agreement with the Salvadoran government, in Tecoluca, El Salvador, in this handout image obtained March 31, 2025.
Secretaria De Prensa De La Presidencia | Via Reuters
The Justice Department said his removal was due to an “administrative error.”
But Justice Department lawyers also said Abrego Garcia had been found to be a member of the notorious gang MS-13, which the United States has designated as a foreign terrorist organization.
His lawyers, however, deny that he is a member of that gang, and have said he has lived in the U.S. for a decade without ever being charged with a crime.
