Trump-appointed judge orders return of Venezuelan migrant deported to El Salvador

A Trump-appointed federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to facilitate the return of a Venezuelan man who was deported to El Salvador last month, saying his deportation violated a prior court settlement.

A Trump-appointed federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to facilitate the return of a Venezuelan man who was deported to El Salvador last month, saying his deportation violated a prior court settlement. 

The 20-year-old migrant, who goes by the pseudonym "Cristian" in court filings, was deported to an El Salvador prison on March 15.

The deportation came after President Donald Trump's "Invocation of the Alien Enemies Act Regarding the Invasion of the United States by Tren de Aragua" proclamation, known as the AEA Proclamation. 

Maryland District Judge Stephanie A. Gallagher, however, ruled Wednesday that Cristian should not have been deported because he is part of a class action settlement that bars his removal pending his asylum application adjudication.

Cristian was part of a class action lawsuit filed in 2019 by a group of undocumented immigrants who entered the U.S. as unaccompanied children and later sought to remain in the U.S. as their asylum applications were adjudicated on the merits by United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). A settlement in the case was reached in 2024.