Immigration Judge’s 2019 Order Found Kilmar ‘Subject to Removal’ by Deportation But Granted ‘Withholding of Removal’ to Guatemala (Not El Salvador)

The Tennessee Star on Tuesday obtained the final deportation order issued by former U.S. Immigration Judge David M. Jones in 2019, which also granted “withholding of removal” relief, showing the judge appeared to prohibit immigration authorities from deporting Kilmar Abrego Garcia to Guatemala, not to El Salvador, where he was born and remains a citizen.

According to the order, Abrego Garcia was given a Notice to Appear (NTA) on March 29, 2019, after the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) alleged that he is not a citizen of the United States, but instead “a native and citizen of El Salvador,” who entered the United States but was not “admitted or paroled after inspection by an immigration officer,” making his entry illegal.

The order states that Abrego Garcia, through his attorney, “admitted the factual allegations in the NTA and conceded removability as charged,” which led Jones to determine Abrego Garcia’s “removability to be established by clear and convincing evidence,” as required by the Immigration and Nationality Act.

While acknowledging the veracity of the claims by DHS, the order notes that Abrego Garcia “filed a Form I-589, Application for Asylum, Withholding of Removal, and Relief under Article 3 of the Convention Against Torture (CAT),” which asked the court to grant him legal asylum in the United States, grant a “withholding of removal” order preventing his deportation to one specific country but not another nation, and declare that he cannot be sent to one specific country based on fear of torture.

The Star has yet to obtain this Form I-589, which is part of the Abrego Garcia immigration case, and is not typically released to the public.
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