DOJ lawyer suspended for not defending deportation case

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A Department of Justice lawyer has been placed on administrative leave after failing to strongly defend the government’s position in a case involving a controversially deported Salvadoran man from Maryland.

Attorney General Pam Bondi announced that Erez Reuveni was suspended with pay after conceding in court that the deportation was conducted erroneously. Bondi emphasized that DOJ attorneys must vigorously represent the United States’ interests, warning of consequences for those who fall short.

The case has sparked urgent legal maneuvers, with the Trump administration filing an emergency appeal to contest US District Judge Paula Xinis’s order demanding the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia to American soil by Monday midnight.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche suspended Erez Reuveni, the acting deputy director of the department’s immigration litigation division tonight. She is the one that was apologizing to the Obama judge for the immigration policy of President Trump.

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The confirmation of Todd…

— Insurrection Barbie (@DefiyantlyFree) April 6, 2025

In their appeal, government lawyers argued that forcing El Salvador to return one of its citizens, particularly one they claim is affiliated with MS-13, was beyond their jurisdiction. They emphasized their limited ability to compel a foreign nation to take specific actions within such a tight timeframe.

Reports indicate that Garcia is currently being held at the Terrorism Confinement Center in Tecoluca, El Salvador, where guards reportedly used force during his transfer.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said, “This individual is an illegal criminal who broke our nation’s immigration laws. He is a leader in the brutal MS-13 gang, and he is involved in human trafficking. And now MS-13 is a designated foreign terrorist organization. Foreign terrorists have no legal protections in the United States of America. And this administration is going to continue to deport foreign terrorists and illegal criminals from our nation’s interior.”

BREAKING: The Justice Department immigration lawyer, Erez Reuveni, who told the court that deporting Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, a father of three, to El Salvador, despite legal protections, was an error, has been placed on administrative leave after expressing open frustration… pic.twitter.com/22gbLpSz3N

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The situation is complicated by Garcia’s previous legal status. Five years ago, an immigration judge blocked his deportation due to concerns about gang violence in El Salvador. While his asylum request was denied, he received deportation protection, a decision ICE didn’t challenge at the time.

The March 15 deportation occurred while Garcia was working as a sheet metal apprentice. He was apprehended in an IKEA parking lot with his 5-year-old son present. His legal team maintains he possessed valid work authorization from the Department of Homeland Security and denies any gang connections, noting the government’s lack of substantial evidence for their allegations.

His wife, Jennifer Vasquez Sura, a US citizen, continues to advocate for his return. However, with Garcia now in El Salvador’s custody, the mechanism for complying with Judge Xinis’s order remains unclear.