A federal judge has sharply condemned the Trump administration for deporting a Guatemalan man in direct violation of an earlier immigration court ruling, describing the government’s actions as “blatant lawlessness.”
On December 5, U.S. District Judge David C. Guaderrama of the Western District of Texas ordered the government to bring Faustino Pablo Pablo back to the United States no later than December 12. He also directed officials to provide daily updates on their efforts to secure his return.
Why It Matters
The ruling underscores ongoing concerns about the administration’s deportation practices, particularly cases where people are removed from the country despite existing legal protections that recognize the risk of persecution or torture if they are returned.
Courts have repeatedly identified instances in which due process and statutory safeguards were set aside, raising alarms about how immigration laws are being implemented under an aggressive mass deportation agenda.
What To Know
Pablo entered the United States without authorization in 2012. An immigration judge later ordered him removed but also concluded that he would likely be tortured if sent back to Guatemala. Despite those protections, Pablo lived in California under supervision and regularly reported to immigration officials until November 5, 2025, when he was detained by immigration agents.
“Pablo Pablo has already shown in immigration court that ‘it is more likely than not that he will be tortured by, or with the consent or acquiescence of, the Guatemalan government,’” Judge Guaderrama wrote in court filings.
According to court documents, Pablo was placed on a flight to Guatemala on November 20—before the federal court could issue an order halting his removal.
“By the time the Court ordered Respondents not to remove Pablo Pablo, he had arrived in Guatemala City,” the judge noted.
In his order, Judge Guaderrama wrote that government attorneys had conceded the deportation was “unlawful.” He granted a preliminary injunction, finding that the removal violated federal law, including the statute that prohibits deporting individuals who have been granted withholding of removal.
The judge stressed the severe danger Pablo faces if left in Guatemala, including the risk of torture, and said the court has a responsibility to enforce both due process and statutory protections.
He also rejected the government’s earlier argument that the court lacked jurisdiction to order Pablo’s return because officials no longer had “actual custody or control” over him. The court pointed out that the government had already agreed to help arrange his return to the United States, giving the court a basis to act in the case.
This ruling joins a series of cases in which courts have pushed back on deportations carried out in spite of legal protections. In one prominent example, Kilmar Abrego Garcia was suddenly deported to El Salvador in March, even though a 2019 immigration judge’s decision had found he was likely to face persecution from a local gang.
Abrego’s case drew national attention after a judge ordered him brought back to the United States, prompting fierce criticism from the White House and senior Homeland Security officials, who attacked both Abrego and the judges involved.
The administration has acknowledged other improper removals as well, including cases where people were deported to El Salvador or Mexico despite court orders, pending asylum claims, missing “credible fear” screenings, or formal findings that they faced a serious risk of torture.
What People Are Saying
Journalist David Toro Escobar wrote in a post on X: “The US government admitted to having illegally deported Guatemalan Faustino Pablo Pablo, who was protected by a court order. A federal court ordered his immediate return to the country.”
Judge Guaderrama also underscored the human cost of the government’s actions in his written order: “In Pablo Pablo’s case, the potential risk to his bodily safety, coupled with the losses he has already experienced from his deprivation of liberty, steeply outweigh the costs to the Government in facilitating his flight home.”
What Happens Next
Under the court’s order, the administration must return Pablo to the United States later this month and keep the judge informed of its progress until he is back on U.S. soil.
