A federal magistrate judge in Tennessee is preparing to release Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an illegal alien and alleged human smuggler tied to MS-13 gang operatives and other dangerous border crossers — a move likely to ignite further backlash against a judicial system seen as soft on criminals and hostile to President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement agenda.

The case, playing out in Nashville, has quickly become a flashpoint in the battle over immigration, sovereignty, and law enforcement under Trump’s second term. Despite serious federal smuggling charges and evidence connecting Abrego Garcia to narcotics, firearms trafficking, and violence against women, U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes on Sunday denied the federal government's request to keep him jailed while awaiting trial.

Although Judge Holmes set a hearing for Wednesday to finalize the release terms, ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) is expected to immediately detain Abrego Garcia for deportation proceedings, potentially preventing the court-ordered release.

Federal prosecutors appealed the ruling and requested a stay to block the release — warning of Abrego Garcia’s history and danger to the public. Acting U.S. Attorney Rob McGuire called his release a risk to national security and emphasized the likelihood that ICE would try to deport him before any trial could occur.

“Overall, the court cannot find from the evidence presented that Abrego’s release clearly and convincingly poses an irremediable danger to other persons or to the community,” Holmes wrote — disregarding allegations of gunrunning, drug trafficking, and abuse tied to witness testimony.

Abrego Garcia, a Maryland construction worker who entered the U.S. illegally, was deported in March to El Salvador, where he claims to fear gang retaliation — despite allegedly smuggling gang members himself. He returned to the U.S. to face charges after the Supreme Court temporarily blocked his deportation in response to mounting pressure from immigration advocacy groups.

At the center of the criminal case is a 2022 traffic stop in Tennessee, where authorities found him driving with nine illegal immigrants in his vehicle — but chose to release him with a warning.

According to a federal indictment, Abrego Garcia is responsible for smuggling hundreds of illegal aliens, including minors and members of MS-13, the same gang he now claims to fear. Still, Judge Holmes dismissed federal concerns, declaring the debate over his release to be “little more than an academic exercise” given ICE’s likely intervention.

McGuire testified that cooperating witnesses accused Abrego Garcia of drug and gun trafficking and assaulting women, but no additional charges have been filed—yet. Prosecutors say those allegations further prove he is too dangerous to be trusted with release.

Will Allensworth, a federal public defender representing Abrego Garcia, argued that a 2019 immigration court ruling bars his return to El Salvador. But even if ICE tries to deport him to a third country, immigration authorities would have to prove that country will accept him — an unlikely outcome that could prolong the legal chaos.

Legal experts like César Cuauhtémoc García Hernández admit that most individuals like Abrego Garcia are deported by ICE before any criminal trial is completed — or even held. He confirmed that even without a conviction, removal from U.S. soil remains possible and lawful.

The Department of Justice and Homeland Security are now reportedly in discussions over whether to prioritize a criminal prosecution or proceed with deportation — a decision that carries national security and political implications as the Trump administration seeks to reinforce a hard line against illegal immigration.

With hundreds of potential smuggling victims, ties to transnational gang networks, and a judge unwilling to acknowledge the clear risks, the case of Abrego Garcia could become a defining example of why Trump’s America First policies remain necessary in the face of judicial overreach and bureaucratic indecision.