Trump-appointed judge orders return of second alleged gang banger deported to El Salvador

A federal judge appointed by President Trump ordered his administration on Wednesday to facilitate the return of another alleged migrant gang member who was deported to El Salvador last month. US District Judge Stephanie Gallagher ruled that the Trump administration violated a settlement agreement that a group of asylum seekers reached with the Biden administration’s Department of Homeland Security last year when it deported the 20-year-old Venezuelan national — identified in court filings only as “Cristian” — under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act. Gallagher was appointed to her spot on the Maryland District Court in 2019, during Trump’s first term. “Like Judge [Paula] Xinis in the [Kilmar] Abrego Garcia matter, this court will order Defendants to facilitate Cristian’s return to the United States so that he can receive the process he was entitled to under the parties’ binding Settlement Agreement,” Gallagher wrote in her opinion, according to ABC News, referencing the case of the alleged MS-13 gang member deported to El Salvador despite having a court order blocking him from being sent to the Central American country. Gallagher noted that facilitating Cristian’s return requires Trump administration officials “making a good faith request to the government of El Salvador and to release Cristian to US custody for transport back to the United States to await the adjudication of his asylum application on the merits by [US Citizenship and Immigration Services].”The judge described Cristian’s deportation as a “breach of contract.”The Trump administration contends that the deportation was appropriate because of the migrant’s alleged ties to Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua (TdA).“On March 15, 2025, [“Cristian”] was removed under the Alien Enemies Act … as a Venezuelan citizen 14 years of age or older who is a member of TdA,” an Immigration and Customs Enforcement official wrote in a sworn declaration, according to ABC News. �...