Federal judge orders DOJ, DHS to stop 'prejudicial' statements about Abrego Garcia and his case [View all]
Source: ABC News
October 27, 2025, 9:11 PM
A federal judge overseeing Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s criminal case in Tennessee has ordered Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice officials to refrain from making prejudicial statements about him. “DOJ and DHS employees who fail to comply with the requirement to refrain from making any statement that ‘will have a substantial likelihood of materially prejudicing’ this criminal prosecution may be subject to sanctions,” wrote U.S. District Judge Waverly Crenshaw.
In his memorandum opinion on Monday, Judge Crenshaw stated that government officials, including DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, have made “extrajudicial statements that are troubling, especially where many of them are exaggerated if not simply inaccurate,” specifically citing statements that Abrego Garcia is a member of MS-13.
Prejudicial statements include comments about Abrego Garcia’s character, reputation, and criminal record, Crenshaw said. He added that Trump officials violated a local court rule limiting comments from government employees relating to an ongoing criminal case and ordered the U.S. attorney's office for the Middle District of Tennessee to notify DOJ and DHS employees about the rule.
In a separate order, the federal judge ordered the government to produce documents under seal to the court about its change in position from "deport but not prosecute” to "prosecute and then deport."
Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/US/federal-judge-orders-doj-dhs-stop-prejudicial-statements/story?id=126918933
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