Nashville, TN – In a recent court filing, U.S. immigration officials stated they do not intend to detain Kilmar Abrego Garcia again, so long as a judge’s order preventing it remains in place.
This development is the latest chapter in the case of the Salvadoran citizen, who has become a figure in the ongoing debate over immigration policy. Abrego Garcia is fighting to remain in the United States after a previous deportation to El Salvador, where he was subsequently jailed.
While Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has stated they will not detain Abrego Garcia while the current order stands, they also made it clear that they would act if the order were to be lifted.
The previous administration officials had accused Abrego Garcia of being associated with the MS-13 gang, allegations he denies. He has no criminal record. After his initial deportation, the government brought him back to the U.S. under court order, but then issued an arrest warrant on human smuggling charges in Tennessee.
Judge Paula Xinis had previously expressed concerns about the government’s adherence to orders preventing the re-detainment or deportation of Abrego Garcia.
Separately, newly released documents reveal that senior Justice Department officials pushed for Abrego Garcia’s indictment, deeming it a “top priority,” only after his mistaken deportation and subsequent return to the U.S. Abrego Garcia has pleaded not guilty to the human smuggling charges. He is seeking a dismissal of the case, arguing that the government is targeting him due to the embarrassment caused by his mistaken deportation.
Abrego Garcia had been in immigration custody for three months before Judge Xinis ordered his release on December 11. During that time, the government considered deporting him to several countries. Judge Xinis found that immigration officials lacked a viable plan for his removal from the U.S. and that he could not be held indefinitely. She also issued an order preventing ICE from re-detaining him, at least for the time being.
Abrego Garcia’s human smuggling case stems from a 2022 traffic stop in Tennessee, where he was pulled over for speeding with nine passengers in his vehicle. While state troopers discussed potential human smuggling, he was ultimately released with a warning. The case was then handed over to Homeland Security Investigations, but there was no recorded effort to file charges until April 2025.
Judge Waverly Crenshaw previously found “some evidence” that Abrego Garcia’s prosecution could be retaliatory. He cited a statement by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, which suggested that the charges were a result of Abrego Garcia’s victory in his wrongful deportation case.
Rob McGuire, former Acting U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee, claimed that he alone made the decision to prosecute and that he harbored no animosity towards Abrego Garcia. However, Judge Crenshaw noted that some documents suggest McGuire was not the sole decision-maker and that the decision to prosecute may have been a joint effort.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee maintains that career prosecutors made the decision to prosecute based on the facts, evidence, and established Justice Department practice. They claim that communications with the Deputy Attorney General’s Office about a high-profile case are routine.
An email from McGuire to his staff indicated that Blanche wanted Garcia charged “sooner rather than later,” according to Judge Crenshaw’s order. Additionally, Aakash Singh, working under Blanche, contacted McGuire about the case on the same day McGuire received the case file from Homeland Security Investigations, which was several days after the Supreme Court ruled in Abrego Garcia’s favor.
Singh later described the prosecution as a “top priority” for the Deputy Attorney General’s Office. Singh and McGuire continued to communicate about the prosecution, with Singh ultimately instructing McGuire to hold the draft indictment until they received “clearance” to file it.
A hearing on the motion to dismiss the human smuggling case based on retaliatory prosecution is scheduled for January 28.
