A federal judge in Maryland ruled Tuesday that Kilmar Abrego Garcia cannot be taken back into immigration custody while his criminal case proceeds, concluding that the Trump administration has shown an inability to secure transfer to a third country for the reasonably foreseeable future.
U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, issued an injunction barring Immigration and Customs Enforcement from re-detaining Abrego Garcia, extending protections she first put in place through an emergency order in December 2025. The ruling allows Abrego Garcia to remain free from ICE custody under conditions tied to a separate federal criminal case in Tennessee, where prosecutors have charged him with human smuggling.
In a 10-page decision, Xinis wrote that the government had failed to demonstrate a sufficient likelihood that Abrego Garcia could soon be removed from the United States, a key factor in justifying immigration detention during removal proceedings.
“The court easily concludes that there is no ‘good reason to believe’ removal is likely in the reasonably foreseeable future,” she wrote, adding that officials “have done nothing to show that Abrego Garcia’s continued detention in ICE custody is consistent with due process.”
The latest order is subject to appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit, based in Richmond, Virginia.
Handling his Tennessee human smuggling case is U.S. District Judge Waverly Crenshaw, also an Obama appointee, who previously allowed him to stay out of U.S. Marshal’s custody pending trial in July. Xinis’s order permits Abrego Garcia’s travel necessary for court appearances related to that prosecution.
Abrego Garcia, who came to the U.S. illegally from El Salvador during the Obama administration in 2011 and later settled in Maryland, has been residing in the state since his release from immigration detention late last year, subject to strict supervision requirements set by the Tennessee court.
His limited release conditions stipulate that he must reside with his brother and may leave home only for work, religious services, medical needs, or court obligations. Travel outside Maryland requires judicial approval.
The case stems from a complex legal mess that began last March, when Abrego Garcia was deported from Maryland to El Salvador despite an earlier immigration court order barring his removal there because of Abrego Garcia’s claimed fears of gang violence. After a series of court challenges, U.S. authorities returned him to the country in June 2025, where, upon his arrival, he was hit with an indictment alleging he helped transport illegal immigrants in his vehicle tied to a December 2022 traffic stop by Tennessee state police.
Following his return, immigration officials again detained him and explored deportation to other countries, including several in Africa, according to court filings. But those efforts were unsuccessful, a point Xinis cited in determining that continued detention was not legally justified.
The government “purposefully—and for no reason—ignored the one country that has consistently offered to accept Abrego Garcia as a refugee, and to which he agrees to go,” Xinis wrote, referring to Costa Rica’s willingness to accept him.
Government attorneys had argued that immigration custody remained appropriate while officials sought another destination willing to accept him. The Department of Homeland Security has also been adamant that Abrego Garcia is an MS-13 gang member with a history of violence, including against his wife, Jennifer Vasquez.
JUDGE SAYS ABREGO GARCIA SUPREME COURT RULING MAY SHAPE VENEZUELAN DEPORTATION CASE
The dispute now unfolds alongside the criminal proceedings in Tennessee, where Abrego Garcia is preparing for a key hearing next week that could make or break the government’s case against him. His legal team has moved to challenge the prosecution, arguing he has been unfairly targeted. The judge overseeing that matter has signaled interest in examining those claims, though no final determination has been made.
Tuesday’s order does not resolve the broader immigration case or the criminal charges but ensures that, for now, Abrego Garcia will remain free under court supervision as litigation continues on multiple fronts. The Trump administration maintains the option to appeal the detention ruling while pursuing the underlying removal case.