Washington, D.C. - A federal judge on Friday accused the Trump administration of attempting to circumvent court orders in a deportation case involving immigrants sent to Ghana, demanding the administration detail it’s efforts to prevent further improper deportations. U.S.District Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson Chutkan expressed skepticism over the administration’s claim it has no control over how Ghana treats deportees, stating, “This appears to be a specific plan to make an end run around these obligations.”
the case centers on the administration’s practice of sending individuals to countries other than their own – including El Salvador, Panama, Costa Rica, and several African nations - as part of its crackdown on undocumented immigration. The Justice Department’s Elianis Perez acknowledged telling the court that Ghana had pledged not to deport the individuals to their home countries, but argued the court lacked authority to dictate another country’s actions. Perez cited a Supreme Court ruling this summer allowing the administration to continue sending immigrants to non-native countries, even without allowing them to raise torture claims.
However, attorney Paul Gelernt drew a comparison to the case of Kilmar abrego garcia, mistakenly deported to El Salvador by the Trump administration despite a court order, and the subsequent difficulty in securing his return. Abrego Garcia is now in the U.S. facing human trafficking charges while fighting another deportation attempt.
Judge Chutkan ordered the administration to file a declaration by 9 p.m. ET outlining its efforts to ensure the immigrants are not improperly sent to their home countries from Ghana. The legal challenge represents the latest in a series of disputes over the administration’s deportation policies and its reach beyond U.S. borders.
