Can someone who has been in the country illegally for nearly a decade -- and accused of committing crimes within the US -- suddenly make an asylum claim? His attorneys argued this morning that Kilmar Abrego Garcia should be allowed to try.
Abrego Garcia already faces charges of human trafficking, along with the long-delayed deportation ordered in 2019. The USCIS arrested him after bailing out on the trafficking charge and plan to send him to Uganda, although the Department of Justice offered Costa Rica as a deportation destination if Abrego Garcia pled out on the trafficking charges. Instead, his attorneys asked a federal judge to grant asylum:
Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who has become the face of President Donald Trump’s hardline immigration agenda, wants to seek asylum in the United States, his lawyers told a federal judge Wednesday.
Abrego Garcia, 30, was detained Monday in Baltimore by U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement after leaving a Tennessee jail on Friday. Administration officials have said he’s part of the dangerous MS-13 gang, an allegation Abrego Garcia denies.
The Salvadoran national’s lawyers are fighting the deportation efforts in court, arguing he has the right to express fear of persecution and torture in Uganda. Abrego Garcia has also told immigration authorities he would prefer to be sent to Costa Rica if he must be removed from the U.S.
As the Associated Press points out, Abrego Garcia tried this in 2019, too. When DHS hauled him into court at that time, Abrego Garcia tried to claim asylum, only to have that claim shot down by a federal judge because his illegal entry more than a year prior invalidated his attempt. The judge did find that extradition to his native El Salvador would put him at risk, however, which is why the Trump administration's deportation to El Salvador had to be reversed.
Abrego Garcia has never been to Uganda, however, and he's never lived there. He has been in the US illegally for almost a decade now, which means he can't claim asylum. Even if the attorneys argue that the clock reset when the US had to bring him back from El Salvador, he's been in the US illegally for months now on that timeline. In order to f file an asylum claim, applicants must present themselves immediately at a valid port of entry to start the asylum process.
It appears that this is a stalling tactic, as well as a strategy by Abrego Garcia's attorneys to allow their client to eat his cake and have it too. The DoJ offered him deportation to Costa Rica as part of a plea deal to settle the trafficking case, where he would get convicted but essentially serve no time. Costa Rica had agreed to process Abrego Garcia as a legal immigrant and declared that they would not detain him despite a conviction and prison sentence in the US. The US wants that prison sentence in place in case Abrego Garcia re-enters the US illegally, at which point they can simply toss him into federal prison and then deport him at the end of that sentence. Abrego Garcia and his attorneys want to avoid that by refusing to accept the conviction.
That speaks volumes about Abrego Garcia's future plans, and emphasizes why the DoJ and DHS want to make sure he's gone for good.
Perhaps a judge will sympathize with Abrego Garcia, but the law is the law on asylum. Even if a district court judge goes rogue, the federal appellate court will not upend the entire asylum process to suit an MS-13 gang member with ties to human trafficking, a move that would declare open season on the southern border all over again. If Abrego Garcia wants to end up in Costa Rica, he knows how to punch that ticket. And he should take that deal before the DoJ decides to just try and convict him of the trafficking charge, at which point they can take a couple of years to set up his eventual deportation to the destination of their choice.
Update: The federal judge hearing the case has extended a TRO to October, meaning Abrego Garcia can't be deported quite yet. However, she didn't release Abrego Garcia from custody in the meantime:
U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis said Wednesday she will extend her temporary restraining blocking his removal until Abrego Garcia's latest deportation challenge in court is resolved.
Judge Xinis scheduled an evidentiary hearing for Oct. 6 in the case challenging Abrego Garcia's deportation to Uganda. She said during a hearing on Wednesday that she will issue a ruling within 30 days of the Oct. 6 hearing.
The judge also said that Abrego Garcia must remain in custody within a 200-mile radius of the court in Maryland. He is currently in a detention center in Virginia.
Judge Xinis said she will not order Abrego Garcia released from immigration custody, saying that issue should be decided by an immigration judge. On Monday, Abrego Garcia's attorneys moved to reopen his immigration case and apply for asylum.
It will be interesting to see whether the DoJ and/or DHS appeal this decision. They may not mind allowing both tracks to continue for a while to put pressure on Abrego Garcia to take the deal.
Editor’s Note: Democrat politicians and radical judges will do everything they can to interfere with and threaten ICE agents enforcing our immigration laws.
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