Court Orders Release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia from Immigration Detention

Sat Dec 20 2025 17:50:20 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was wrongfully deported and detained, has been released following a court ruling which deemed his detention unlawful.

Kilmar Abrego Garcia has been released from immigration detention after a US District Court ruled that the Trump administration held him without legal authority. The court order comes after Mr. Abrego Garcia faced wrongful deportation earlier this year. His attorney expressed hope for his future even as the government prepares to appeal the ruling.

Kilmar Abrego Garcia has been released from jail after a judge ruled the Trump administration had detained him without lawful authority, his lawyer says.

A US court ruled that the government did not have a removal order for Mr. Abrego Garcia, which blocks it from deporting him at this juncture.

Mr. Abrego Garcia, who is married to an American citizen and has been living in Maryland for years, illegally came to the US from El Salvador when he was a teenager. He was mistakenly deported back to El Salvador in March and brought back to the US to face criminal charges.

But Thursday's ruling may not be the final word as the justice department is expected to appeal.

Mr. Abrego Garcia's attorney, Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, told CBS News on Thursday that his client was officially out of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody.

The order by US District Judge Paula Xinis means Mr. Abrego Garcia can at least temporarily return to his family in Maryland. We remain hopeful that this marks a turning point for Mr. Abrego Garcia, who has endured more than anyone should ever have to, Mr. Sandoval-Moshenberg said.

A Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman criticized the ruling, calling it naked judicial activism by an Obama-appointed judge. We will continue to fight this tooth and nail in the courts, Tricia McLaughlin wrote.

The case has become a focal point in the Trump administration's crackdown on immigration after Mr. Abrego Garcia was deported, despite a 2019 court order barring his deportation. The administration alleged Mr. Abrego Garcia was a member of the MS-13 criminal organization, which he has denied.

In 2019, he was arrested with three other men in Maryland and detained by federal immigration authorities. The judge granted him protection from deportation, citing potential gang persecution in his home country.

However, in March, he was deported, prompting an order from the US Supreme Court in April for the government to return him. He was brought back to the US in June, arrested, and faced human smuggling charges, pleading not guilty.

Judge Xinis emphasized that immigration detention cannot be punitive or indefinite, and noted prior confusion regarding his potential removal to several African nations and Costa Rica, which had expressed willingness to accept him.