Supreme Court Rejects Government’s Appeal Against Retrieving Kilmar Abrego Garcia from El Salvador

The Supreme Court rejected the government’s emergency appeal against an order by federal District Court Judge Paula Xinis, keeping her order to retrieve Kilmar Abrego Garcia from El Salvador intact except for the deadline that passed earlier in the week.

The unsigned SCOTUS ruling, with no dissents, said:

The order properly requires the Government to ‘facilitate’ Abrego Garcia’s release from custody in El Salvador and to ensure that his case is handled as it would have been had he not been improperly sent to El Salvador.

Because Abrego Garcia is imprisoned abroad, Xinis must clarify her order to ensure it does not cross into foreign affairs, which are within the purview of the executive branch. SCOTUS told the government to be ready to say what has done to retrieve him and what else it can do.

The government has admitted in court that it should not have sent Abrego Garcia to El Salvador. The government knew an immigration judge issued an order in 2019 saying if he was ever removed from the USA, he must not be sent to El Salvador. However, the government claimed it is helpless to do anything to rectify its mistake and bring him back.

Liberal SCOTUS justices said the government should have acted quickly to correct “its egregious error” and saying it could not retrieve him is “plainly wrong.” They went on to write:

The Government’s argument, moreover, implies that it could deport and incarcerate any person, including U.S. citizens, without legal consequence, so long as it does so before a court can intervene.

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