{"id":2646504,"date":"2026-08-18T12:37:01","date_gmt":"2026-08-18T16:37:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/utm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaignobama-judge-gravely-mishandled-kilmar-abrego-garcias-human-smuggling-case-doj-says\/"},"modified":"2026-08-18T12:41:18","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T16:41:18","slug":"utm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaignobama-judge-gravely-mishandled-kilmar-abrego-garcias-human-smuggling-case-doj-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/utm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaignobama-judge-gravely-mishandled-kilmar-abrego-garcias-human-smuggling-case-doj-says\/","title":{"rendered":"DOJ: Obama Judge &#8216;Gravely&#8217; Mishandled Abrego Garcia Case"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Futm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaignobama-judge-gravely-mishandled-kilmar-abrego-garcias-human-smuggling-case-doj-says%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2646504&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/clinton-appointed-judge-blocks-desantis-on-penalizing-big-tech-for-censorship\/\" title=\"Clinton-Appointed Judge Blocks DeSantis On Penalizing Big Tech For Censorship\">federal judge appointed<\/a> by President Obama, Waverly Crenshaw, dismissed human smuggling charges against Kilmar Abrego Garcia, citing vindictiveness by prosecutors. the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office for the Middle District of tennessee has appealed, arguing that the judge&#8217;s reasoning was incorrect and that the prosecution was legitimate. Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran national and accused MS-13 gang member, was initially pulled over in Tennessee in 2022 due to suspicious circumstances and later investigated for human smuggling. His case was dismissed on the grounds that it was retaliation related to his civil suit challenging his deportation, but the DOJ contends that the prosecution was justified and free of vindictive motives.The DOJ criticizes the judge\u2019s submission of presumptive vindictiveness, warning that accepting the ruling could hinder legitimate criminal prosecutions and lead to numerous similar motions in high-profile cases. The 6th Circuit Court of appeals has yet to rule on the matter.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>The Obama-appointed federal judge overseeing human smuggling charges against illegal alien <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/kilmar-abrego-garcia\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Kilmar Abrego Garcia<\/a> \u201cgravely\u201d mishandled the case, according to a new Justice Department filing. <\/p>\n<p>The U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee made the key claim in its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/usao-mdtn\/media\/1458166\/dl?inline\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">opening brief<\/a> before the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals. It asked the appellate court to overturn District Judge Waverly Crenshaw\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/tennesseelookout.com\/2026\/05\/22\/in-nashville-a-federal-judge-dismisses-indictment-against-kilmar-abrego-garcia\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">dismissal<\/a> of a criminal indictment against Abrego Garcia \u2014 a <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/06\/04\/turn-this-new-york-times-immigration-story-inside-out-and-its-perfect\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">credibly accused<\/a> MS-13 gang member and wife-beater \u2014 for alleged human smuggling. The Obama-appointed Crenshaw claimed that the agency\u2019s prosecution of the infamous \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/12\/29\/the-lefts-top-25-lies-of-2025\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Maryland man<\/a>\u201d was vindictive. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe prosecution of Kilmar Abrego Garcia in Tennessee was not vindictive and the evidence before the district court established that it was not. Instead, the evidence showed that charges were brought against Abrego Garcia because the evidence conclusively established that he had committed the serious crime of human smuggling. That\u2019s not vindictive. That\u2019s protecting the public and the order never considered the strength of the case,\u201d U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee Braden Boucek said in a <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/USAttyBoucek\/status\/2089501345686446221?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">statement<\/a> responding to the filing. <\/p>\n<p>According to DOJ, Abrego Garcia was pulled over by Tennessee police in 2022 and subsequently reported to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) \u201cbased on evidence that he was engaged in human smuggling.\u201d The agency noted how the Salvadoran national\u2019s \u201cstated route of travel made no sense, and the vehicle was full of passengers who, despite being on a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/taliban-wont-let-women-board-planes-without-men\/\" title=\"Taliban Won\u2019t Let Women Board Planes Without Men\">long-distance road trip<\/a>, had no luggage.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>While DHS\u2019s inquiry into Abrego Garcia was closed in 2025 following his deportation to El Salvador, the agency reopened the investigation after a Maryland-based federal judge ordered his return to the United States. Meanwhile, then-Acting U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee Robert McGuire \u201cseparately began investigating the 2022 traffic stop\u201d and ultimately \u201cobtained a grand-jury indictment of Abrego for human smuggling for financial gain\u201d following further investigation. <\/p>\n<p>As described by DOJ, Crenshaw dismissed the case against Abrego Garcia \u201con the theory that the government brought this prosecution \u2026 in retaliation for his civil suit challenging\u201d his deportation to El Salvador. The agency noted how the Obama appointee \u201cacknowledged that the evidence was insufficient to establish <em>actual<\/em> prosecutorial vindictiveness\u201d but nonetheless \u201capplied a presumption of vindictiveness to the initial indictment, a measure no court has taken before, which required findings that the prosecutor had a \u2018personal stake\u2019 in Abrego\u2019s removal suit \u2026 and acted \u2018unreasonabl[y]\u2019 in bringing charges.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The DOJ went on to argue that Crenshaw \u201cgravely erred under both prongs of the presumptive-vindictiveness inquiry.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>The agency first contended that it is \u201cundisputed\u201d that McGuire had no stake \u201cin Abrego\u2019s removal suit,\u201d and that \u201cthere is no evidence \u2014 despite the district court\u2019s (unfounded) authorization of extensive discovery \u2014 that anyone else in the government pressured or induced\u201d him to prosecute Abrego Garcia. It then argued that there is \u201cnothing unreasonable\u201d about the government\u2019s decision to charge Abrego Garcia \u201cfor the serious crimes charged,\u201d noting how the Salvadoran\u2019s impending return to America \u201cgave the government an obvious legitimate motive to prosecute him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Supreme Court and this Court have made clear that, given its potential to \u2018block a legitimate response to criminal conduct\u2019 \u2026 the \u2018presumption of vindictiveness has a \u201climited\u201d scope,&#8217;\u201d the DOJ brief reads. \u201cYet the district court\u2019s broad and amorphous conception of presumptive vindictiveness would dangerously expand that doctrine, necessitating unwarranted probing of the mental states and motivations of government officials and inviting courts to usurp the prosecutorial discretion constitutionally committed to the Executive Branch. This Court should reverse.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In concluding its arguments, the DOJ warned of severe ramifications should the 6th Circuit adopt Crenshaw\u2019s approach in the case. The agency notably argued that it would \u201clead to a flood of vindictive prosecution motions in high profile cases\u201d across the country. <\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s unclear when the 6th Circuit will issue a final decision on the matter. <\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He is a co-recipient of the 2025 Dao Prize for Excellence in Investigative Journalism. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics and RealClearHealth. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>DOJ: Obama judge mishandled Abrego Garcia case<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"featured_media":2646505,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Waverly-Crenshaw.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[32712,55971,4901,81446],"class_list":["post-2646504","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-federal-courts","tag-judicial-accountability","tag-justice","tag-legal-misconduct"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Waverly-Crenshaw.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2646504","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/539"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2646504"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2646504\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2646508,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2646504\/revisions\/2646508"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2646505"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2646504"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2646504"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2646504"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}