No one disputes that he was in the U.S. illegally.
This is a lie. Garcia was granted this work permit in 2019 by the Department of Homeland Security, and was employed as a sheet metal apprentice. He had been granted a withholding of removal status, which allowed him to legally work and live in the U.S. This has been well documented. John is lying.
Therefore–it follows–he should be deported to his home country.
Garcia wasn’t deported. He was sent to an El Salvador prison at the American government’s behest, and U.S. taxpayers are funding his incarceration. He’s essentially a prisoner under the American justice system, but being held in a foreign prison — all without any charges being filed against him in either country. This is ridiculous.
…because he could be threatened by a rival gang.
Nope. He wasn’t threatened by a rival gang. Garcia never, ever used that term. His story hasn’t changed: He and his brother were threatened by a gang trying to recruit them, which they both refused to do, and both fled to America. This has been well documented. John is lying.
a reliable informant told police that Garcia was “an active member of MS-13”
This anonymous informant (who has never been identified) allegedly told police the arresting officer that Garcia was an active gang member in New York, a place Garcia has never lived. The officer, Ivan Mendez, was suspended days later for leaking confidential police information to a street walker, who was also his mistress. Not exactly an unimpeachable source. As far as I know, his assertion that “a Chicago Bulls jacket and hoodie” was known MS-13 attire has never been substantiated, but even if it has, this “evidence” is very thin gruel. And that’s literally all the evidence that’s been presented to support the MS-13 accusation. The immigration judge who granted the stay found Garcia, who denied any gang affiliation, credible.
Garcia is also a domestic abuser
Garcia has never been convicted (or even charged) with this crime. Even his wife denounces that characterization. In a statement, she said she did seek a civil protective order in 2021 after a disagreement with Garcia, but noted that she had survived a previous relationship that included domestic violence, which triggered her fear. She did not appear at the court hearing, and the matter did not proceed. She has further commented
“Things did not escalate, and I decided not to follow through with the civil court process,” she said in the statement. “We were able to work through this situation privately as a family, including by going to counseling. Our marriage only grew stronger in the years that followed. No one is perfect, and no marriage is perfect.”
Is domestic violence a problem? Absolutely? Do some victims stand by their abusers, out of fear or loyalty? Again, yes. But last time I checked (which was right now), Garcia has never, ever been charged with a crime in either the United States or El Salvador, and the punishment for an uncompleted restraining order is not life in a brutal concentration camp. This has all been well documented. John is, at best, mischaracterizing the facts here.
But even if you dismiss all of the above, John is ignoring the Constitution. I assume he didn’t miss Fifth Amendment day in law school. The Fifth Amendment reads (in part):
No person… shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.
Notice how it says “person” and not “citizen”? The evidence that Garcia is a person is pretty compelling, and yet he’s been deprived of liberty without due process of law. This is black-letter-law illegal.
But if that doesn’t convince you, let’s now peruse the Fourteenth Amendment:
No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
Notice how it says “citizens” in the first part of the sentence and “person” in the second part of the sentence? That seems pretty important. Maybe John missed Fourteenth Amendment day.
So, even if Garcia is MS-13 (which hasn’t been definitively established in any way, shape or form), his capture and imprisonment is still unconstitutional.
If he were brought back to the U.S., and definitively proven in court, following the rules of evidence, to be a member of MS-13, then by all means deport him and let El Salvador do what they wish, and I won’t shed a single tear for him. But until then, his imprisonment is quite plainly illegal.
John went to law school. He should absolutely know this. But he’s gotta keep throwing that red meat, I guess.
Powerline Lies... 