Trump administration to deport Abrego Garcia again
The Trump administration said it would send Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was wrongfully deported to El Salvador, to an unnamed "third country" as part of its renewed effort to deport him, multiple outlets reported on Thursday.
The big picture: The Trump administration has included deportations to non-origin countries in its immigration policy with permission from the Supreme Court.
Catch up quick: Abrego Garcia was returned to the U.S. earlier this month, and the Justice Department was ordered to release him from prison in Tennessee while he awaited trial.
U.S. District Judge Waverly Crenshaw said on Wednesday that Abrego Garcia is likely to eventually be deported to El Salvador, where he's originally from.
Abrego Garcia pleaded not guilty to allegedly smuggling undocumented immigrants in the U.S.
Zoom in: "Our plan is that he will be taken into ICE custody and removal proceedings will be initiated," Jonathan Guynn, deputy assistant attorney general at the DOJ's civil division, told the court on Thursday, per NOTUS.
"To El Salvador or a third country?" U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis asked.
"To a third country is my understanding," he responded.
What they're saying: "We have said it for months and it remains true to this day," Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin told Axios. "He will never go free on American soil."
State of play: Guynn said there was no timeline for the removal.
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