A Salvadoran national whose mistaken deportation spurred national outcry in the United States will remain in jail for now, as lawyers discuss how to prevent him from being removed from the country a second time.On Wednesday, Kilmar Abrego Garcia was set to be released from pre-trial custody without having to post bail. He is being held in detention in Nashville, Tennessee, on criminal charges of human smuggling.
The administration of President Donald Trump had sought to stop his release, deeming him to be a flight risk.
But US District Judge Waverly Crenshaw upheld a magistrate judge’s earlier decision finding that Abrego Garcia was eligible to walk free.
However, in an unexpected twist, lawyers on both sides argued that, if Abrego Garcia were released, he risks being taken into the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for a second deportation.
That would deprive Abrego Garcia of the chance to defend himself against the charges, which he has denied. And lawyers for the government argued that it would also scuttle their criminal case against him.
Judge Crenshaw noted in a written decision that, since it is the government’s choice whether or not to deport Abrego Garcia, the situation appeared to be a case of the executive branch doing “injury on itself”.
“If deported, the Government argues, the Department of Justice will be deprived of th …
