NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Kilmar Abrego Garcia will remain in jail for at least a few more days while attorneys in the federal smuggling case against him spar over whether prosecutors have the ability to prevent Abrego Garcia’s deportation if he is released to await trial.

The Salvadoran national whose mistaken deportation became a flashpoint in the fight over President Donald Trump’s immigration policies has been in jail since he was returned to the U.S. on June 7, facing two counts of human smuggling.

Although a federal Judge has ruled that he has a right to be released and even set specific conditions for his release, his attorneys expressed concern that it would lead to immediate detention by ICE and deportation.

On Sunday, U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes ruled that Abrego Garcia does not have to remain in jail ahead of that trial. On Wednesday afternoon, she set conditions for his release in preparation to allow him to go. But Abrego Garcia’s impending release has been halted over concerns that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement would take him into custody immediately and possibly try to deport him before he can stand trial.

Holmes expressed doubts about her own power to require anything more than that prosecutors use their best efforts to secure the cooperation of Homeland Security and ICE.

“I have no reservations about my ability to direct the local U.S. Attorney’s office,” the judge said. “I don’t think I have any authority over ICE.”

Holmes did not say when she would file the release order for Abrego Garcia, but it will not happen before Friday afternoon.

  • Onyxonblack@lemmy.zip
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    3
    arrow-down
    1
    ·
    19 hours ago

    This is absolutely atrocious and wrong… Here is my fantasy wish: An actual Country with some Empathy & Humanity somewhere in the world, out of the almost 200 countries in the world, to step up and offer full asylum and citizenship to him and his family… But that would mean that we weren’t already in the worst fucking timeline. :(