The Trump administration admitted that it had deported a Maryland father with protected legal status and mistakenly sent him to an El Salvador mega prison. However, the administration said U.S. courts lack jurisdiction to order his return.

"Through administrative error, Abrego-Garcia was removed from the United States to El Salvador," a top ICE official wrote in a statement to a federal judge.

Politico reports:

He was arrested by ICE on March 12 and sent to El Salvador on March 15, where his wife recognized him in a video showing the shackled and shaven prisoners being arrayed by Salvadoran authorities.

The Trump administration now says there’s nothing it can do to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return to U.S. custody. The Justice Department is urging a federal judge to reject a petition by Abrego Garcia’s attorneys to seek his return to United States custody, saying the Trump administration has no power to force El Salvador to facilitate that demand — and that the courts have no authority to issue such an order.

JD Vance doubled down, saying it's "gross to get fired up" over this. He falsely wrote on Xitter that Garcia is "a convicted MS-13 gang member with no legal right to be here."

The issue is not whether Abrego Garcia was removable — it’s that the court agreed he shouldn’t be sent to El Salvador. The administration has scoffed at the notion there have been errors in March 15 flight determinations. But here they acknowledge one.https://t.co/Zpi181RT9X pic.twitter.com/TdDaSEmBvY

— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) April 1, 2025

Your comment, @JDVance, is a lie.

— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) April 1, 2025

So, the Trump administration admits it was an "error," but Vance is still running with the lie. This further proves why due process is vital.