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June 13, 2025

Man wrongly deported despite court order faces federal charges

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Wrongly deported man fights federal charges after Supreme Court orders return

Kilmar Abrego Garcia was wrongfully deported to El Salvador in Mar. 2025 despite a 2019 immigration court order shielding him from removal.

On Jun. 6, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered the Trump administration to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return from El Salvador.

Abrego Garcia pleaded not guilty on Jun. 13, 2025 to conspiracy to transport aliens and unlawful transportation of aliens for monetary gain.

Body-camera footage from a Nov. 2022 Tennessee traffic stop shows Garcia driving a vehicle with nine passengers; officers found $1,400 in an envelope.

Federal prosecutors allege Garcia and co-conspirators transported thousands of undocumented immigrants in a years-long smuggling operation.

The human-smuggling charges against Garcia were filed under seal after his wrongful deportation, suggesting retroactive prosecution.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes is presiding over Garcia’s federal case and will issue a detention decision soon.

Ben Schrader, chief of the criminal division at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee, resigned over the decision to prosecute Garcia.

After deportation, Garcia was held at CECOT, a maximum-security prison in El Salvador known for detaining alleged gang members.

🛂Immigration📜Constitutional Law✊Civil Rights⚖️Justice

Test Your Knowledge

10
Q1

In what month was Kilmar Abrego Garcia mistakenly deported to El Salvador?

Q2

Abrego Garcia had been living legally in the United States for more than a decade.

Q3

What gang does the Trump administration allege Abrego Garcia is associated with?

Q4

What charges did Abrego Garcia plead not guilty to on June 13, 2025?

Q5

What message did Abrego Garcia's wife share from him at a news conference?

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People, bills, and sources

Kilmar Abrego Garcia (legal permanent resident and defendant in federal human-smuggling case)

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Donald J. Trump (2025-present President whose administration oversaw the deportation and return order)

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U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes (presiding judge in Garcia’s arraignment and detention hearing)

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Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg (defense attorney who called the prosecution “an abuse of power”)

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Ben Schrader (former chief of the criminal division, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Middle District of Tennessee, who resigned in protest)

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Jennifer Vasquez Sura (Garcia’s wife, who read his message urging faith for separated families)

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What you can do

1

Call your U.S. senators at (202) 224-3121 and ask them to support legislation requiring ICE to comply with judicial orders protecting legal residents from deportation.

2

Email the Department of Homeland Security Secretary at officeofthedhssecretary@hq.dhs.gov to express concern about ICE agents ignoring court orders that protect legal permanent residents.

3

Check your immigration status documents at uscis.gov/check-case-status to ensure withholding-of-removal or asylum orders are properly recorded in federal databases.

4

Submit public comments to DHS on immigration detention standards through regulations.gov (search 'DHS detention') before upcoming rulemaking deadlines.

5

Attend local immigrant rights organization meetings or town halls to ask elected officials about safeguards preventing wrongful deportation of legal residents.

6

Contact your U.S. representative through house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative to request oversight hearings on DOJ resignations over politically motivated prosecutions.

7

File FOIA requests with ICE at ice.gov/foia to obtain deportation data for your region and identify patterns of court order violations.

8

Contact your state attorney general's office to explore state-level legal protections for noncitizen residents facing federal deportation despite court protections.

9

Join your county's immigrant rights coalition or local ACLU chapter at aclu.org/action to support legislative reforms requiring judicial notice before deportation.

10

Connect with local immigration attorneys through aila.org (American Immigration Lawyers Association) to understand your family's legal protections if you have mixed-status members.

11

Set Google Alerts for 'Abrego Garcia' and 'wrongful deportation' to track new developments in this case and similar separation-of-powers conflicts.

12

Follow SCOTUSblog.com's Emergency Docket section to monitor Supreme Court orders on immigration enforcement and executive compliance with judicial mandates.

13

Subscribe to the American Immigration Council newsletter at americanimmigrationcouncil.org for weekly updates on due process protections and enforcement policy changes.

14

Monitor the Senate Judiciary Committee's immigration oversight page at judiciary.senate.gov for hearings on ICE compliance with court orders.

15

Register to testify at Senate Judiciary Committee hearings on immigration enforcement oversight by contacting committee staff at (202) 224-5225.

16

Support organizations like the Immigrant Defense Project at immigrantdefenseproject.org that litigate systemic challenges to unlawful deportation practices.