Tainted Probe Leads to Dismissal in Abrego Garcia Trafficking Case

A Tennessee federal judge dismissed the federal human-trafficking charges against Kilmar Abrego Garcia, ruling the investigation was tainted and launched to justify the government’s removal of him to El Salvador; the judge found a presumption of vindictiveness and said prosecutors reopened the probe after Abrego’s deportation case succeeded, with the DOJ planning an appeal. Abrego, a Salvadoran citizen who had lived in Maryland, had been charged after a 2022 traffic stop and was deported and later returned to the U.S. before the charges were brought, though he pleaded not guilty.