Federal prosecutors are seeking to convince U.S. District Judge Waverly Crenshaw in Nashville, Tennessee, to reverse a magistrate judge’s ruling allowing Abrego to be released on bail to await a trial.
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Abrego, a 29-year-old Salvadoran migrant who had been living in Maryland, has remained in legal limbo for weeks as Trump administration officials have given conflicting accounts of whether he will be tried in a U.S. court or quickly removed from the country again.
Abrego was deported and imprisoned in his native El Salvador in March despite a 2019 court order barring him from being sent there because of a risk of gang persecution.
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The Trump administration, which portrays illegal immigration as a grave public safety threat, has alleged Abrego is a member of the MS-13 gang, a charge his lawyers deny.
The Justice Department brought Abrego back to the U.S. last month after securing an indictment charging him with taking part in a smuggling ring to bring immigrants to the U.S. illegally. He was accused of picking up migrants, including children, near the U.S.-Mexico border and transporting them to locations across the U.S.
Abrego has pleaded not guilty. His lawyers say the Trump administration brought the charges to cover up violations of Abrego’s rights, and say alleged co-conspirators cooperating with prosecutors should not be trusted because they are seeking relief from deportation and criminal charges of their own.
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In an unusual move, Abrego’s attorneys asked the judge to delay Abrego’s potential release from criminal custody until Wednesday, citing concerns he will be quickly deported without a chance to challenge his removal.
In a separate civil lawsuit over Abrego’s wrongful deportation, the Trump administration has indicated it would most likely seek to deport Abrego to a third country, not El Salvador, floating Mexico and South Sudan as options.
