Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran national who lived in Maryland with his U.S. citizen wife and young son who has autism, was arrested in Baltimore in March 2025 and deported to El Salvador's CECOT prison despite a 2019 court order protecting him from removal. US District Judge Paula Xinis ruled the government had 'no legal authority' to arrest, detain, or deport him, calling it a 'grievous error' that 'shocks the conscience,' and ordered his return; his lawyer denied any gang ties and said he had never been charged with a crime. Following public pressure and a Supreme Court order, he was returned to the U.S. in June 2025, after which federal prosecutors indicted him on human smuggling charges in Tennessee. Costa Rica offered him refugee status in August 2025, but the administration instead pursued deporting him to Liberia. A judge ordered his release from ICE custody in December 2025 after finding government lawyers misled the court, later blocking his re-detention and deportation to Liberia, and a federal judge dismissed the smuggling charges in May 2026 as a vindictive response to his legal challenges, a ruling the government is appealing. A hearing meant to determine whether he would be deported to Liberia was abruptly canceled, as his legal team seeks a permanent injunction and argues he should instead be sent to Costa Rica.