Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
Editorials & Other Articles
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
Judge orders Abrego Garcia's release, but government expected to detain him
Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was mistakenly deported by the Trump administration to El Salvador then returned to the U.S. amid a legal battle, was ordered released from jail on Sunday by a Tennessee judge while he awaits federal trial.
The government, however, is expected to quickly detain him upon his release, which U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes scheduled a Wednesday hearing to discuss.
The Justice Department has filed a motion to appeal the judge’s release order.
At a detention hearing on June 13, prosecutors said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) would take Abrego Garcia into custody if he were released on the criminal charges, and he could be deported before he has a chance to stand trial.
The government, however, is expected to quickly detain him upon his release, which U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes scheduled a Wednesday hearing to discuss.
The Justice Department has filed a motion to appeal the judge’s release order.
At a detention hearing on June 13, prosecutors said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) would take Abrego Garcia into custody if he were released on the criminal charges, and he could be deported before he has a chance to stand trial.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/judge-orders-abrego-garcia-release-002757065.html
13 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
He's a dangerous human trafficker who must be kept in custody at all costs. If he is ordered released, we will take him into custody and deport him, whereupon he may simply be released into his country of origin. Or, he may be held once again in the El Salvadoran prison that we were ordered to return him from, whereupon we charged him with these very dangerous offenses for which he's now being ordered to be released, whereupon we'll surely take him into custody and deport him, perhaps to the El Salvadoran prison from which we were ordered to return him, whereupon we charged him with these extremely dangerous offenses.
A federal judge rejected the government’s claim of Abrego’s gang membership while denying the broader effort to detain him pretrial.
Link to tweet
https://www.msnbc.com/deadline-white-house/deadline-legal-blog/kilmar-abrego-garcia-ms-13-trump-administration-rcna214530
Before the Trump administration finally returned Kilmar Abrego Garcia to the U.S. this month, officials kept claiming he belonged to the deadly MS-13 gang. Even if true, that wouldn’t have been a valid reason for the government to avoid compliance with a court order for his return after illegally sending him to El Salvador in March.
But in any event, it shouldn’t escape notice that a federal judge just picked apart the gang claim that the Justice Department has continued to push since his return.
That picking-apart came in Sunday’s ruling that rejected the DOJ’s bid to detain Abrego ahead of trial on criminal charges the government had waiting for him upon his return. He pleaded not guilty to allegations of illegally transporting undocumented immigrants. (U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes’ opinion Sunday noted that his preferred surname is “Abrego,” after he has been consistently referred to in court documents and reports as “Abrego Garcia.”)
Abrego’s criminal charges don’t hinge on whether he’s a gang member. But the issue arose in Holmes’ detention ruling because the government argued that his alleged gang membership supported his detention. “The Government’s investigation has revealed that the defendant has a long history and association with MS-13,” prosecutors wrote ahead of a June 13 hearing.
But in her ruling following the hearing, Holmes said the government’s evidence of Abrego’s MS-13 membership “consists of general statements, all double hearsay, from two cooperating witnesses.” She said those statements, in turn, are contradicted by another witness who, the judge wrote, said that “in ten years of acquaintance with Abrego, there were no signs or markings, including tattoos, indicating that Abrego is an MS-13 member.” Given the conflicting evidence, the judge wrote, “the government’s evidence of Abrego’s alleged gang membership is simply insufficient.”
So, after months of the administration insisting on Abrego’s gang membership (again, not that it would excuse failing to return him as required by court order issued in April), there was a clear chance to prove it in court. The government failed to do so......
But the failure to support the MS-13 claim is indicative of an amateurishness that has marked the government’s conduct throughout this sordid affair. If it’s a sign of things to come, it could bode well for Abrego’s legal fight.
But in any event, it shouldn’t escape notice that a federal judge just picked apart the gang claim that the Justice Department has continued to push since his return.
That picking-apart came in Sunday’s ruling that rejected the DOJ’s bid to detain Abrego ahead of trial on criminal charges the government had waiting for him upon his return. He pleaded not guilty to allegations of illegally transporting undocumented immigrants. (U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes’ opinion Sunday noted that his preferred surname is “Abrego,” after he has been consistently referred to in court documents and reports as “Abrego Garcia.”)
Abrego’s criminal charges don’t hinge on whether he’s a gang member. But the issue arose in Holmes’ detention ruling because the government argued that his alleged gang membership supported his detention. “The Government’s investigation has revealed that the defendant has a long history and association with MS-13,” prosecutors wrote ahead of a June 13 hearing.
But in her ruling following the hearing, Holmes said the government’s evidence of Abrego’s MS-13 membership “consists of general statements, all double hearsay, from two cooperating witnesses.” She said those statements, in turn, are contradicted by another witness who, the judge wrote, said that “in ten years of acquaintance with Abrego, there were no signs or markings, including tattoos, indicating that Abrego is an MS-13 member.” Given the conflicting evidence, the judge wrote, “the government’s evidence of Abrego’s alleged gang membership is simply insufficient.”
So, after months of the administration insisting on Abrego’s gang membership (again, not that it would excuse failing to return him as required by court order issued in April), there was a clear chance to prove it in court. The government failed to do so......
But the failure to support the MS-13 claim is indicative of an amateurishness that has marked the government’s conduct throughout this sordid affair. If it’s a sign of things to come, it could bode well for Abrego’s legal fight.
