Salvadoran Abrego Garcia Is Released From US Detention

Garcia has made headlines in recent months over the U.S. government’s attempts to make an example of him over its enforcement against illegal immigrants.

Kilmar Abrego Garcia (C) departs the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Baltimore Field Office the day after a federal judge ordered his released from detention in Pennsylvania in Baltimore, Md., on Dec. 12, 2025. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Salvadoran who prompted a legal showdown over immigration policy over the past several months, has been released from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody.

U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis ruled on Dec. 11 that the U.S. government did not have the lawful authority to detain him at the immigration detention facility where he was being housed.