Chief Justice John Roberts has stepped in to temporarily halt the midnight deadline set for the Trump administration to bring back a man who was mistakenly deported to a dangerous prison in El Salvador.
The case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a legally permitted worker in the U.S., has become a focal point in the wider immigration debate, raising serious concerns about government errors and due process.
Who Is Kilmar Abrego Garcia?
Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a 29-year-old Salvadoran national, was legally living and working in the United States with a work permit issued by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
He was working as a sheet metal apprentice, studying to become a certified journeyman. His wife is a U.S. citizen, and he had been granted protection from deportation by an immigration judge back in 2019.
Despite this, he was wrongfully deported last month to El Salvador, where he was sent to a prison known for its harsh conditions and dangerous gang presence.
Why Was He Deported?
The Trump administration described the deportation as an “administrative error.” However, it also accused Abrego Garcia of being a member of the MS-13 gang, an allegation his lawyers say is completely unfounded.
A U.S. District Court judge, Paula Xinis, called the government’s claims “vague and uncorroborated”, and described the decision to deport him as “wholly lawless.”
Even the Justice Department later admitted in court that he should not have been deported, and the lawyer handling the case, Erez Reuveni, was removed and placed on leave by Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Supreme Court Intervenes
Judge Xinis had ordered the government to “facilitate and effectuate” Abrego Garcia’s return to the U.S. by midnight on Monday, but the Justice Department argued in an emergency appeal that the judge had overstepped her authority.
Chief Justice John Roberts agreed to pause the deadline, giving the Supreme Court more time to consider the case. The administration says it currently has no way to bring Abrego Garcia back, as he is no longer in U.S. custody and now in the hands of foreign authorities.
Broader Implications
This case comes at a time when the Trump administration is also asking the Supreme Court for permission to deport Venezuelan migrants—also accused of gang membership—under the Alien Enemies Act, a rarely used 18th-century wartime law.
A federal appeals court in Richmond, Virginia, rejected the administration’s request for a stay in Abrego Garcia’s case. Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson wrote bluntly, “There is no question that the government screwed up here.”