The legal standoff over the deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a convicted illegal alien with reported MS-13 ties, intensified Tuesday as Judge Paula Xinis, an Obama appointee, moved closer to holding Trump officials in contempt of court for failing to facilitate his return from El Salvador.
The development stems from a Supreme Court order requiring the Trump administration to “facilitate” the return of Abrego Garcia—an order that has now become the subject of fierce legal parsing and political backlash.
Attorneys Push for Contempt
Attorneys for Abrego Garcia filed a motion demanding that the administration take concrete action to request his release from the CECOT supermax prison in El Salvador. Their filing states:
“There is no evidence that anyone has requested the release of Abrego Garcia… To give any meaning to the Supreme Court’s order, the Government should at least be required to request the release.”
They argue that the administration’s refusal to formally engage with El Salvador is tantamount to defying the spirit—if not the letter—of the Supreme Court’s decision.
DOJ Fires Back, Trolls Court
The Trump Department of Justice, in a pointed Monday night filing, offered no new logistical information about Abrego Garcia’s location or custodial status. Instead, it linked to public remarks by El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, who earlier the same day told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins in the Oval Office:
“How can I smuggle a terrorist into the United States? Of course, I’m not going to do it. The question is preposterous.”
The DOJ’s filing appears to use Bukele’s comments to underscore the administration’s legal stance—that the U.S. cannot compel a foreign sovereign to release a prisoner, and the government’s obligations under the Supreme Court’s facilitation order are limited to logistical support, not diplomatic coercion.
Judge Xinis Escalates Pressure
Judge Xinis has demanded daily updates from the Trump Administration and accused officials of making “no meaningful effort to comply” with court orders. Her growing frustration signals that a contempt ruling could be imminent, potentially setting up an explosive separation-of-powers confrontation between the judiciary and executive branch.
What’s Next?
With the Trump DOJ continuing to maintain that El Salvador alone controls Abrego Garcia’s custody, and Bukele refusing to budge, the path forward remains unclear.
Legal experts warn that if Xinis does move forward with contempt charges, it could trigger a constitutional clash over the limits of judicial authority in directing U.S. foreign policy—particularly when dealing with deportable foreign nationals held abroad.
Meanwhile, President Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi have remained firm, with Bondi stating that:
“He [Garcia] was lawfully deported. El Salvador is not under our jurisdiction. We will not smuggle foreign terrorists back into this country.”
The case now stands at a legal and political flashpoint—where judicial interpretation, foreign sovereignty, and national security interests collide.