A federal judge in Maryland on Thursday (December 11) ordered the release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia from immigration detention, ruling that US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had no lawful authority to continue holding him.

US District Judge Paula Xinis said Abrego Garcia must be freed “immediately,” noting that he had been “re-detained, again without lawful authority” after being mistakenly deported to El Salvador earlier this year.

In 2019, an immigration judge ruled he could not be deported to El Salvador because a gang had threatened his family. He received a work permit and was placed under supervision.

Despite that ruling, he was mistakenly deported to El Salvador on March 15, 2025, and imprisoned there in harsh conditions. His case quickly became a focal point in th

See Full Page