The Trump administration has said it intends to remove Abrego Garcia to the East African nation after he declined a plea deal in his human smuggling case.
WASHINGTON — Kilmar Abrego Garcia filed a new habeas petition in federal court Monday seeking to block the Trump administration from deporting him to the East African nation of Uganda.
Abrego Garcia surrendered to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody Monday morning less than 72 hours after being released from jail in Tennessee. The Justice Department has charged him with human smuggling in connection with a 2022 traffic stop in the state.
On Saturday, Trump administration officials said the government would seek to remove Abrego Garcia to Uganda after he rejected an offer to plead guilty and remain in jail in exchange for deportation to Costa Rica. The administration obtained a promise from the Costa Rican government that Abrego Garcia would have legal immigration status in that country and would not be detained.
Abrego Garcia refused to offer and was released on Friday by order of a magistrate judge in Tennessee. He was able to briefly reunite with his family over the weekend before surrendering to ICE custody on Monday.
“Today has been a very special day because I have seen my family for the first time in more than 160 days,” Abrego Garcia said in Spanish in a recording shared by CASA Inc. on Friday.
Attorneys representing Abrego Garcia filed a new habeas petition on Monday seeking to block his removal to Uganda. Although that filing remained sealed Monday morning, his attorneys have argued in other briefs that he is the victim of vindictive prosecution by the Trump administration. Attorneys from the law firm Hecker Fink representing him in Tennessee say the criminal case in that state is an effort to punish him for “having the audacity to fight back.”
Abrego Garcia’s new habeas petition was assigned to U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis, who also heard his previous habeas case challenging his initial, unlawful deportation to El Salvador. Xinis scheduled a 2 p.m. call Monday for attorneys in the case, although it was not clear there would be a way for the public to listen.
Under a standing order in Maryland federal court, ICE cannot seek to remove Abrego Garcia until 4 p.m. on Wednesday at the earliest. The Justice Department has sued every federal judge in Maryland in an effort to overturn that order. A Virginia federal judge appointed by President Donald Trump who heard arguments on that lawsuit earlier this month expressed skepticism that the Trump administration would prevail.