
Trump admin continues releasing information to paint Abrego Garcia as violent gang member as outcry against deportation grows
CNN
The Trump administration this week escalated its efforts to portray the Maryland man wrongly deported to El Salvador as a gang member with a violent history who they say is “never coming back” to the United States.
The Trump administration this week escalated its efforts to portray the Maryland man wrongly deported to El Salvador as a gang member with a violent history who they say is “never coming back” to the United States. A renewed push to cast Kilmar Abrego Garcia as a violent member of MS-13 comes amid growing public outcry against his deportation, criticisms about the lack of due process afforded to him, and the US government’s resistance to facilitate his court-mandated return to the country – which could risk a constitutional crisis. Abrego Garcia’s family and lawyers have denied he’s a gang member. Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland flew to El Salvador on Wednesday to lobby for the release of his constituent, who the senator described as having been “illegally abducted.” Van Hollen met with Abrego Garcia on Thursday, who was then placed back in El Salvador’s custody. The Trump administration slammed the senator’s visit and has criticized the media and Democrats for presenting what they described as an overly rosy picture of Abrego Garcia, whom White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has described as a gang member and “apparent woman beater.” The government on Wednesday released previously unshared documents stemming from two interactions Abrego Garcia had with law enforcement or the courts system: a 2019 arrest that didn’t lead to charges or a conviction, but did result in his detention by immigration officials, and a 2021 protective order his wife filed against him alleging domestic violence, which she later decided against pursuing further after she said the couple had resolved their issues. Here is what those documents say about his previous interactions with law enforcement: