Trump's fixation on wrongly deported man's tattoos nothing but a distraction, says lawyer

Sheena Goodyear · CBC Radio

· Posted: May 02, 2025 5:59 PM EDT | Last Updated: 21 minutes ago

It doesn't substance what benignant of tattoos Kilmar Abrego Garcia has, says his lawyer.

What matters, says Rina Gandhi, is that her lawsuit was mistakenly deported to El Salvador, wherever helium remains imprisoned without complaint contempt 2 tribunal orders that the U.S. authorities enactment to bring him back. 

U.S. President Trump has skirted those orders portion coating Garcia has a violent gangster, pointing to his knuckle tattoos arsenic proof. 

"His character, whether helium is deserving — which is what the medication is attempting to propulsion guardant arsenic the communicative that we should attraction astir — is not relevant,"  Gandhi told As It Happens host Nil Kӧksal.

"If the authorities volition not marque bully religion efforts to bring him backmost successful accordance with the Supreme Court order, with the territory tribunal order, past I deliberation we should each beryllium acrophobic and wondering, you know, who's next?"

Conflicting statements from Trump administration

Garcia, a Salvadorian migrant who lives successful Maryland with his woman and 3 children, was detained on March 14 and questioned astir his alleged engagement with the pack MS-13, which the U.S. State Department has designated arsenic a overseas violent organization. 

His lawyers contradict helium has immoderate pack affiliations. He has not been charged with immoderate crimes. 

Garcia was sent to El Salvador connected March 15, contempt a 2019 court bid barring his deportation to the country. The Trump medication aboriginal admitted it was an administrative error. 

A Maryland territory judge ordered the medication to "facilitate and effectuate" Garcia's contiguous return, and the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the ruling. 

LISTEN | Immigration lawyer impeach U.S. of 'thumbing note' astatine courts: 

The U.S. medication has repeatedly insisted Garcia's destiny is out of their hands, and lone Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele has the powerfulness to merchandise him.

But, successful an interrogation with Terry Moran of ABC News connected Tuesday, Trump conceded that helium could get Garcia released and returned with a elemental telephone telephone if helium wanted to. 

"They're talking retired of some sides of their mouth," Gandhi said. "It's frustrating, and I don't person a bully reply of however we benignant of marque consciousness of these conflicting statements."

She accused the medication of "trying slander this man's sanction and enactment everything retired successful the media but, you know, not enactment thing successful a existent court."

"That's not the attack that I judge in, and that's not the strategy I judge in," she said. 

Knuckle tattoos

In that aforesaid ABC interview, Trump insisted that Garcia has an MS-13 tattoo connected his knuckles. 

Photos of Garcia amusement that helium has 4 symbols connected his knuckles: A leaf, a smiley face, a transverse and a skull. Several experts have said the tattoos are not grounds of pack affilation.

On societal media, Trump has repeatedly shared a photograph of himself holding up a printed photograph of Garcia's knuckle tattoos with "M S 1 3" superimposed implicit the photograph successful integer text, each quality corresponding with 1 of the tattoos.

In his interrogation with Moran, Trump insisted the photos helium shared were unaltered, seeming to connote Garcia virtually had the gang's sanction tattooed connected his knuckles. 

When Moran tried to close the record, Trump interjected: "MS-13. It says MS-13."

WATCH | Protests against Trump deportations: 

Gandhi says she can't corroborate 1 mode oregon the different what tattoos her lawsuit has, because she and her colleagues person been "denied immoderate entree to him."

Asked however he's doing down bars, she said: "I would emotion to archer you. The existent reply is I don't know. I find retired accusation astir him overmuch the aforesaid arsenic you."

Domestic maltreatment allegations

Trump and his officials person besides accused Garcia of home violence, citing a 2021 protective bid petition filed by his wife, Jennifer Vasquez Sura, which accused him of physically assaulting her. 

Sura said successful a connection connected April 16 that she decided to driblet the petition, and that she and her hubby "were capable to enactment done this concern privately arsenic a family, including by going to counselling," reports BBC News.

She has championed his origin since his deportation. 

"He was illegally detained, abducted and disappeared by the Trump administration, though they admitted it was an error," Sura said Wednesday during a protestation successful Washington, D.C. "For everyone watching, support fighting."

The Democrats, meanwhile, person taken up Garcia's case, with Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen visiting him past period successful El Salvador.

Democratic senators person introduced a solution to unit the medication to study to Congress astir what steps it is taking to comply with courts, and different to compel a U.S. State Department reappraisal of quality rights issues successful El Salvador.

The Trump medication has deported hundreds of people, mostly Venezuelans, to El Salvador successful caller months nether the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, accusing them of being pack members without grounds oregon trial.

A U.S. national judge ruled the deportations were "beyond the scope of the law."

Gandhi says that, contempt however head-spinning this lawsuit has been, she believes the regularisation of instrumentality volition prevail, and her lawsuit volition beryllium released. 

"I deliberation we each should judge successful that due to the fact that that's what our nine is built on. If we springiness up connected that, and we don't support pushing for that, what are we near with?"