Full Breakdown
Kilmar Ábrego Garcia Returns to Court as U.S. Seeks Third-Country Deportation
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event
Kilmar Ábrego Garcia, a 31-year-old Salvadoran who was mistakenly removed to El Salvador’s CECOT mega-prison in March 2025, is scheduled to appear before a federal judge in Maryland on Tuesday. The administration is again pursuing his removal, this time to a third country, after a preliminary injunction that barred his detention and deportation to Liberia was issued by U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis.
Background & Context
In 2019 an immigration judge barred Ábrego Garcia’s deportation to El Salvador, citing threats from the MS-13 gang to his family. Despite that order, ICE officials deported him in March 2025, an act later described by ICE as an “administrative error.” Public outcry and the court order led the Trump administration to bring him back to the United States in June 2025, simultaneously filing a human-smuggling indictment in Tennessee. A federal judge dismissed the indictment in May 2026, finding the Justice Department’s prosecution was motivated by retaliation for his legal challenges.
Legal Developments
The government is now moving to vacate the injunction that prevents his removal to Liberia, a West African nation previously identified by Department of Homeland Security officials as a potential destination. Ábrego Garcia’s attorneys are seeking to make the injunction permanent, arguing that any deportation should be to Costa Rica, which had earlier agreed to accept him. The administration’s position is reflected in a March 2026 memo from former acting ICE director Todd Lyons, who stated that sending Ábrego Garcia to Costa Rica would be “prejudicial to the United States” because of resources already expended negotiating with Liberia.
Advocacy Response
Jossie Flor Sapunar, national communications director for the activist group We Are CASA, criticized the government’s strategy, describing Ábrego Garcia as an “international symbol of due process” that the administration is attempting to silence. Sapunar emphasized the family’s desire for privacy, whether they remain in Maryland or relocate to Costa Rica.
What’s Next
The court’s decision on the government’s request to lift the injunction will determine whether Ábrego Garcia faces removal to Liberia, another third-country option, or remains in the United States while his legal challenges continue.