Attorneys For Maryland Man Deported To El Salvador Say Trump Admin Has To 'At Least Required To Request' His Release

Attorneys for Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Maryland man wrongfully deported to El Salvador, said the Trump administration has to "at least be required to request" his release to honor the Supreme Court's ruling on the matter.

In a court document submitted on Tuesday, the attorneys also disputed the government's argument that it lacks authority to secure Abrego Garcia's return, pointing to an ICE policy that requires DHS supervisors to "fully coordinate the...international...level to facilitate the return of removed individuals."

The document also criticizes the government for not complying with a court order requiring it "take all available steps to facilitate the return of Abrego Garcia to the United States as soon as possible," arguing that its updates "do not indicate that any steps have been taken to comply with this Court's and the Supreme Court's orders."

The case of Abrego Garcia is dominating headlines as a result of the Trump administration's reluctance to comply with the Supreme Court ruling requiring it take steps to bring him back, as well as the visit by Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele to the White House on Monday.

Speaking to press, Bukele said he has no intention nor the authority to return Abrego Garcia, deported despite a 2019 court order barring his removal to El Salvador, country he fled in 2011. The Trump administration has alleged that Abrego Garcia is affiliated with MS-13, a claim his legal team and his wife have strongly denied.

"How can El Salvador return him to the United States? By smuggling him? Of course we're not going to do that. I don't have the authority to return him," Bukele, a Trump ally, said.

Attorney General Pam Bondi was also present at the meeting and said Abrego Garcia had been determined by a judge to be a member of the MS-13 gang and that he was in the country illegally. " "That's up to El Salvador if they want to return him. That's not up to us," Bondi said, even though Bukele said the country doesn't have the authority to do so.

The U.S. State Department has confirmed that Garcia, is alive and currently being held at the CECOT mega-prison, a maximum-security facility operated by the Salvadoran government.

Several Democrats have criticized the situation, with Democratic Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen saying that if Abrego Garcia is not returned soon he will "travel to El Salvador this week to check on his condition and discuss his release."

"We should care about this case because of due process. Every American citizen is due their due process, and people who are in the United States under legal protective status, like Abrego Garcia was, are entitled to due process," Van Hollen said.

Elsewhere, New York Rep. Ritchie John Torres told journalist Yashar Ali that he is planning to introduce the "RESCUE Act," a bill that would require the U.S. to take action if someone is wrongfully deported and if a foreign government also declines to comply with their return.

Under Torres' proposed legislation, the U.S. government would be required to suspend diplomatic ties, foreign aid, and visas for a country's government officials and their immediate family members until the person is returned to the United States, whether they are a citizen, a permanent resident, or a noncitizen who had lawful status at the time of their deportation, Ali detailed. Torres then reposted his message on X.

Originally published on Latin Times