Judge again delays Abrego Garcia’s release from Tennessee jail over deportation concerns

By TRAVIS LOLLER and BEN FINLEY Associated Press NASHVILLE Tenn AP Kilmar Abrego Garcia will stay in jail for now over concerns from his lawyers that he could be deported if he s published to await his trial on human smuggling charges a federal judge in Tennessee ruled Monday Abrego Garcia s attorneys had urged the judge to delay his release because of what they described as contradictory statements by President Donald Trump s administration over what would happen to the Salvadoran national The lawyers wrote in a brief to the court Friday that we cannot put any faith in any representation made on this issue by the Justice Department adding that the irony of this request is not lost on anyone Justice Department spokesman Chad Gilmartin recounted The Associated Press on Thursday that the department intends to try Abrego Garcia on the smuggling charges before it moves to deport him stating that Abrego Garcia has been charged with horrific crimes including trafficking children and will not walk free in our country again This courtroom sketch depicts Kilmar Abrego Garcia sitting in court during his detention hearing on Wednesday June in Nashville Tenn Diego Fishburn via AP Hours earlier Justice Department attorney Jonathan Guynn notified a federal judge in Maryland that the U S executive plans to deport Abrego Garcia to a third country that isn t El Salvador Guynn commented there was no timeline for the deportation plans Abrego Garcia s attorneys on Friday cited Guynn s comments as a reason to fear he would be deported directly Abrego Garcia a construction worker who had been living in Maryland became a flashpoint over Trump s hardline immigration policies when he was mistakenly deported to his native El Salvador in March Facing mounting pressure and a Supreme Court order Trump s Republican administration returned him this month to face the smuggling charges which his attorneys have called preposterous Jennifer Vasquez Sura center left wife of Kilmar Abrego Garcia leaves the federal courthouse Wednesday June in Nashville Tenn AP Photo George Walker IV In a response to the request by Abrego Garcia s attorneys Friday acting U S Attorney Rob McGuire agreed to delaying Abrego Garcia s release He reiterated his stance that Abrego Garcia should remain in jail before trial The prosecutor also disclosed he lacks jurisdiction over U S Immigration and Customs Enforcement stating he has no way to prevent Abrego Garcia s deportation The Department of Homeland Assurance which includes ICE did not respond directly to a question from The Associated Press on Friday regarding its plans for Abrego Garcia A DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin mentioned in a message that he will never go free on American soil Abrego Garcia s attorneys have accused the Trump administration of bringing Abrego Garcia back to convict him in the court of populace opinion with the intention of deporting him before he has a chance to defend himself at trial In a just world he would not seek to prolong his detention further his attorneys wrote Related Articles More than charged in billion strength care fraud schemes takedown Justice Department says GoFundMe is refurbishing a little-known financial tool in a bid to supercharge everyday giving Disney cruise ship rescue gang saves girl and father after overboard fall A more defensive Pride Activists say celebrations are more critical as US conservative states rescind LGBTQ protections Fans criticize Beyonc for shirt calling Native Americans the enemies of peace Abrego Garcia s attorneys have appealed the judge to delay his release until a July court hearing which will consider a request by prosecutors to revoke Abrego Garcia s release order while he awaits trial Abrego Garcia pleaded not guilty on June to smuggling charges that his attorneys have characterized as an attempt to justify his mistaken expulsion to a notorious prison in El Salvador When the Trump administration deported Abrego Garcia in March it violated a U S immigration judge s order in that barred his expulsion to his native country The immigration judge had exposed that Abrego Garcia faced a credible threat from gangs that had terrorized him and his family The human smuggling charges pending against Abrego Garcia stem from a traffic stop for speeding in Tennessee during which Abrego Garcia was driving a car with nine passengers without luggage U S Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes in Nashville wrote in a ruling Sunday that federal prosecutors failed to show that Abrego Garcia was a flight peril or a danger to the locality During a court hearing Wednesday Holmes set specific conditions for Abrego Garcia s release that included him living with his brother a U S citizen in Maryland But she held off on releasing him over concerns that prosecutors can t prevent ICE from deporting him Finley stated from Norfolk Virginia