A federal judge this week canceled the trial of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran man wrongfully deported, and scheduled a hearing to discuss whether prosecutors were motivated by revenge in pursuing his human smuggling case.
Abrego Garcia became a focus of the immigration debate after the Trump administration deported him to El Salvador’s notorious prison in March. Facing mounting public pressure and court orders, the Trump administration brought him back to the United States in June, but only after a warrant was issued for his arrest in Tennessee on human smuggling charges.
Abrego Garcia has denied the charges and argued prosecutors were retaliating and selectively targeting him. Judge Waverly D. Crenshaw, Jr. wrote in Tuesday’s order that Abrego Garcia has sufficient evidence to hold a hearing on the subject, which Crenshaw has scheduled for Jan. 28.
At that hearing, prosecutors will have to explain their reasons for charging Abrego Garcia, and if they fail to do that, the charges could be dismissed, Crenshaw wrote.
When Abrego Garcia was pulled over in 2022, there were nine passengers in the car, and the officers discussed suspicions of smuggling among themselves. However, Abrego Garcia was eventually allowed to continue driving with only a warning.
A Department of Homeland Security agent previously testified that he did not begin investigating the traffic stop until the U.S. Supreme Court said in April that the Trump administration must work to deport Abrego Garcia from El Salvador.
A few years ago, Abrego Garcia won protection from deportation to his home country after a judge found he faced a danger there from a gang targeting his family. The order allows Abrego Garcia, who has an American wife and children, to live and work in the United States under the supervision of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Members of President Donald Trump’s administration have accused Abrego Garcia of being a member of the MS-13 gang, but he has strongly denied the accusations and has no criminal record.
Abrego Garcia’s defense attorney and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Nashville did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
