The case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was erroneously deported to El Salvador despite a court order, has spotlighted growing errors in U.S. immigration removals. Lawyers report a surge in similar wrongful deportations as the administration pursues aggressive targets. Advocates attribute the mistakes to the haste of operations, raising concerns over legal protections for immigrants.
Kilmar Abrego Garcia's deportation in 2025 drew widespread attention for its speed and error. Working in Maryland one week, he was sent to a notorious El Salvador prison the next, despite an administrative judge's finding of credible fear of torture there. A Maryland judge ordered his return in April 2025, and he re-entered the U.S. via a Baltimore ICE office in August 2025.
His lawyer, Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, described the case as 'the tip of the spear.' He now handles about a dozen similar wrongful removals, noting, 'the problem is getting worse and not better.' Other instances include Daniel Lozano-Camargo, a 20-year-old Venezuelan deported to El Salvador in violation of a court order; he was later sent to Venezuela in a prisoner exchange. Jordin Melgar-Salmeron, a 31-year-old Salvadoran, remains in the same El Salvador facility after a New York appeals panel's July order for his return, which officials ignored due to a 'confluence of errors.'
The Trump administration aims for one million deportations annually, with daily quotas accelerating processes. Dara Lind of the American Immigration Council explained, 'things moving too fast is really where we've seen this administration lean in,' leading to poor inter-agency communication. Cases often involve deportations to prohibited third countries or during ongoing asylum proceedings.
The Department of Homeland Security maintains it complies with court orders and targets those without legal status. Trina Realmuto of the National Immigration Litigation Alliance observed an uptick in such cases over the past year, though wrongful removals have occurred under prior administrations. Additional errors affected DACA recipients like Evenezer Cortez Martinez, deported to Mexico in March despite protections, and Federico Reyes Vasquez, removed to Mexico four days after detention in December, violating a Utah judge's stay.
These incidents highlight decentralization in enforcement, where protections from one agency may not reach detention operations, endangering vulnerable individuals.
