administration hastily sends back migrant, deported to Mexico, to United States in a reversal of policy
In an unprecedented move, a Guatemalan migrant, using the pseudonym O.C.G., who claims to have been expelled unjustly to Mexico, is once again in the US, as his legal team announced. This incident seems to be the initial instance of the Trump administration reinstating a migrant following a judge's mandate for facilitating their return.
O.C.G.'s unexpected reappearance in the US happened on Wednesday, according to Trina Realmuto, the executive director of the National Immigration Litigation Alliance. One of Realmuto's team members has reportedly been in contact with the arrival. Currently, O.C.G. is being held by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Last week, the Trump administration stated in court filings that they were "working" on bringing back O.C.G. after repeatedly declining similar orders to assist in the return of deported migrants in other legal cases.
Tricia McLaughlin, a DHS spokesperson, claimed that O.C.G. was an unauthorized immigrant who had been granted a stay of deportation to Guatemala. Instead, he was sent to Mexico, a safe destination for him, according to McLaughlin. However, she continued, this federal judge "activist" ordered the administration to bring him back for a potential asylum hearing in the US, despite having no prior connection to the country.
U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy, who is presiding over a case regarding migrants being deported to countries that aren't their homeland, ordered O.C.G's return last month. Murphy ruled that his removal to Mexico, and subsequently Guatemala, likely lacked due process.
After initially entering the US and being deported once, O.C.G. reentered the country in 2024, seeking asylum after suffering numerous violent attacks in Guatemala. During his second journey to the US, O.C.G. claimed he was sexually assaulted and held for ransom in Mexico. A judge later decided he should not be sent back to Guatemala in 2025. Just two days later, the government expelled him to Mexico, according to Murphy's order.
Following his deportation, O.C.G. declared last month that he was living in hiding, frequently panicking and fearful. He alleged that he had not been given an opportunity before his expulsion to relay his fear of being sent to Mexico, and his pleas to speak with an attorney were disregarded.
Initially, the government contended that O.C.G. had expressed no apprehension regarding being deported to Mexico. However, they recently retracted this claim after failing to identify an immigration official who could substantiate it.
Murphy's ruling came shortly after an appeals court denied the Trump administration's request to delay an order that required it to facilitate the return of a 20-year-old Venezuelan migrant who was wrongfully deported to El Salvador earlier this year. During a hearing last month, US District Judge Stephanie Gallagher remarked that officials had made minimal progress in complying with her instruction that they facilitate that migrant's return to the US for his asylum application to be addressed.
In a similar case, the Trump administration has been embroiled in a dispute with another federal judge in Maryland over her order that they facilitate the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a man who was improperly sent back in March. US District Judge Paula Xinis, who is overseeing the case, has faced persistent resistance from the Justice Department and members of the Trump administration, who have perpetually impeded an "expedited fact-finding" search to uncover answers on the actions being taken to facilitate Abrego Garcia's return from El Salvador.
In brief, O.C.G.'s story highlights the ongoing legal challenges to the Trump administration's deportation policies, such as the federal judge's unlawful ruling against the removal of over 130 Venezuelan men under the Alien Enemies Act. However, the exact frequency of court orders demanding the return of wrongfully expelled migrants remains undisclosed.
- The ongoing legal saga of O.C.G., the Guatemalan migrant who reappeared in the US, is a part of the broader politics surrounding policy-and-legislation regarding immigration, as his case involves a federal judge's ruling against the Trump administration's deportation policies.
- The general news coverage of the Trump administration's immigration policies has been robust, with many cases litigated in courts, including O.C.G.'s story, which illustrates the ongoing debate and conflict between judges and the administration over migration legislations.
