US Edition
Federal judge rules Kilmar Abrego Garcia can’t be re-detained by immigration authorities
A federal judge ruled ICE cannot re-detain Kilmar Abrego Garcia after the 90-day limit expired and no viable deportation plan exists, citing failed attempts to deport him to multiple countries.
- On Tuesday, Feb 17, 2026, U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis barred Immigration and Customs Enforcement from re-detaining Kilmar Abrego Garcia due to a lack of a workable deportation plan within the detention period.
- Kilmar Abrego Garcia was mistakenly deported to El Salvador last year despite facing danger there and was returned to the U.S. federal court before his Dec. 12, 2025 release.
- The judge criticized the government for ignoring Costa Rica's offer and pursuing removal to Uganda, Eswatini, Ghana, and Liberia, with officials feigning ignorance about their plan.
- The court may convert the temporary injunction on rearrest into a permanent order or dissolve it, and the government has until Friday to clarify its plans for Petitioner Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia.
- As a result, the case has become central to immigration debates, constraining ICE's detention power without realistic removal plans and spotlighting the Tennessee criminal case, which may be vindictive.
104 Articles
104 Articles
Trump Administration Cannot Detain Abrego Garcia Again, Federal Judge Says
Stephanie Scarbrough/APA federal judge ruled Tuesday that the Trump administration cannot detain Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia again after the deadline for his detention period has expired.“Respondents had not yet secured any travel documents necessary to effectuate Abrego Garcia’s third-country removal, despite their claims to be ‘working to get travel documents,’” U.S. District Court Judge Paula Xinis wrote in a 10-page filing.“From this, the C…
Louisiana Illuminator
Federal judge rules ICE can’t take Kilmar Abrego Garcia back into custody
Kilmar Abrego Garcia speaks to people who held a prayer vigil and rally on his behalf outside the Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in Baltimore, Maryland, on Aug. 25, 2025. Lydia Walther Rodriguez with CASA interprets for him. (Photo by William J. Ford/Maryland Matters)WASHINGTON — A federal judge in Maryland Tuesday barred U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement from re-detaining Kilmar Abrego Garcia, saying the Trump administratio…
Judge blocks ICE re-detention of Abrego Garcia ahead of hearing
A federal judge in Maryland ruled Tuesday that Kilmar Abrego Garcia cannot be taken back into immigration custody while his criminal case proceeds, concluding that the Trump administration has shown an inability to secure transfer to a third country for the reasonably foreseeable future. U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, issued an injunction barring Immigration and Customs Enforcement from re-detaini…
PBS NewsHour
WBALJudge rules Kilmar Abrego Garcia can’t be re-detained by immigration authorities
A federal judge has ruled that Immigration and Customs Enforcement cannot re-detain Kilmar Abrego Garcia because a 90-day detention period has expired and the government has no viable plan for deporting him.
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