A federal immigration judge has denied a motion to reopen the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran man whose asylum claim was previously dismissed despite credible fears of gang violence in his home country. The ruling, issued Tuesday from the Executive Office for Immigration Review, closes what many advocates describe as his last legal avenue to remain in the United States.
Abrego Garcia, 32, has lived in Maryland since 2018, working construction and supporting his U.S.-born daughter. His original asylum application cited threats from MS-13 after he refused to pay extortion fees in San Salvador. According to immigration court records, the judge at the time deemed his testimony “not sufficiently detailed,” a conclusion his legal team now argues was based on misinterpretation and inadequate translation.
Immigration attorneys say motions to reopen are rarely granted less than 5% succeed nationally, per Department of Justice data. For applicants like Abrego Garcia, who lack legal representation during initial hearings, the odds shrink further. “One misstep, one misunderstood word, and your entire future hinges on that moment,” said Maria Chen, a staff attorney with the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES), which filed the motion on his behalf.
Neighbors in Langley Park have rallied around Abrego Garcia, holding vigils and collecting letters of support. Local churches and a youth initiative organized a petition that gathered over 2,000 signatures. “He’s not just a case file,” said Morales, who has known him since he arrived. “He coaches soccer for kids who’ve never had a father figure. He shows up.”
Abrego Garcia’s legal team is now exploring a narrow window to appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals, though success there remains statistically slim. Meanwhile, he continues to report weekly to ICE, his work boots still caked with the red clay of suburban construction sites a quiet defiance in the face of bureaucratic finality.
His daughter, four years old and fluent only in English, asks every night if they’ll stay. He tells her yes, because hope is the one thing the system hasn’t yet learned how to deport. But outside their apartment window, the summer rain falls harder each week, washing away more than just dust it’s eroding the fragile ground beneath families like his, one denied motion at a time.
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