GREENBELT, Maryland — A federal judge on Friday sharply rebuked the Trump administration for its push to withhold details on what it has done to reverse the deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the suspected MS-13 gang member deported to El Salvador as a result of an “administrative error.”
U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis said during a tense hearing that the administration had not provided sufficient information, from either senior officials or credible documents, to explain how it is facilitating the return of Salvadoran national Abrego Garcia, who was removed from the United States on March 15 despite an immigration judge’s order barring removal to his country of origin.
“You have not given me anything that I can really say, ‘OK, I understand what of the plaintiffs’ requests or the court’s order, in the government’s view, poses a reasonable danger to diplomatic relations,’” Xinis said. She called the government’s resistance to explaining their position publicly “an exercise in utter frustration.”
The Trump administration has invoked the state secrets privilege in the case, saying disclosure of internal deliberations could harm U.S. foreign policy. But Xinis pushed back, suggesting that an affidavit from Secretary of State Marco Rubio defending the administration’s position lacked specificity and failed to justify the sweeping secrecy claims.
“How do I assess that? It’s so very general,” she said.
At issue Friday was whether the government has a reasonable basis to invoke state secrets privileges to withhold information about what steps it has taken to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return to the U.S. after the Supreme Court upheld part of her ruling last month on April 4, finding that the government must help “facilitate” his return.
“It is a fact beyond change that Mr. Abrego Garcia was removed without lawful authority,” she said, warning that any attempt by the administration to suggest otherwise would face stiff legal resistance.
DOJ lawyer Jonathan Guynn responded sternly, saying, “With respect, your honor, he was removed lawfully.”
The government has also disputed what efforts it must take to see Abrego Garcia returned to the U.S., suggesting that it cannot compel Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele to send him back.
Guynn acknowledged an administrative error occurred when Abrego Garcia was mistakenly deported to El Salvador, rather than another country, but Guynn contended Friday that his removal in general from the U.S. was not unlawful.
“His removal from the United States was lawful,” Guynn said, adding Abrego Garcia will “never walk freely in the U.S.”
Additionally, the Department of Homeland Security has consistently maintained that Abrego Garcia was involved in numerous incidents linking him to MS-13, a terrorist gang network, such as a suspected human trafficking incident on Dec. 1, 2022, when he was stopped by the Tennessee Highway Patrol.
The judge appeared unimpressed with the DOJ’s efforts to defend its state secrets invocation, suggesting that the department must begin efforts to explain its defense within a sealed hearing. She cited a lack of firsthand testimony and the administration’s decision to withhold 1,140 documents from Abrego Garcia’s legal team.
Abrego Garcia’s attorney, Andrew Rossman, told the court it was “deeply disturbing” that administration officials continued to claim they were complying with Xinis’s orders while publicly signaling the opposite.
Meanwhile, DOJ attorneys made efforts to show that Abrego Garcia is doing well as he remains in El Salvador. The department revealed he is currently detained in a Santa Ana penitentiary and “in good health,” even noting that he had “gained weight.”
Xinis indicated she would allow the administration to submit a more detailed and narrowly tailored explanation of its privilege claims under seal but said she intended to keep as much of the case in open court as possible.
NOEM REFUSES TO ANSWER WHETHER PICTURE OF KILMAR ABREGO GARCIA WAS DOCTORED
“At the end of the day, you may convince me,” she told DOJ lawyers. “But until then, I need to see more.”
A sealed portion of the hearing followed Friday’s public session, and Xinis acknowledged after a protracted sparring with DOJ attorneys that she would outline the next steps for the government to invoke its state secrets privilege.
