A U.S. judge ruled on Friday that the Trump administration must return a Maryland man who was wrongly deported to El Salvador last month back to the United States within three days.
U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis in Greenbelt, Maryland, said at a court hearing that the government must take steps to ensure the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran migrant, to the United States by April 7.
The U.S. has already acknowledged Abrego Garcia - who lived in the U.S legally and had a work permit - was deported in error, but has argued it has no legal authority to bring him back to the country.
One of Abrego Garcia's lawyers, Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, told the judge at Friday's hearing that there was no legal basis for Abrego Garcia's deportation.
“They admit they had no legal authorization to remove him to El Salvador,” Moshenberg said. “The public interest lies in the government following the law.”
Erez Reuveni, a lawyer for the government, conceded that Abrego Garcia should not have been removed.
"That is not in dispute," Reuveni said.