A Maryland congressman’s quest to check on a wrongly deported constituent in El Salvador hit a wall last week, leaving families and advocates reeling over a father’s detention far from home. Rep. Glenn Ivey’s failed visit to Kilmar Abrego Garcia, held in a Salvadoran prison, underscores the human cost of a deportation gone wrong, with a community left grasping for answers.

On May 23, Ivey, a Democrat, traveled to El Salvador to meet Abrego Garcia, a 29-year-old Salvadoran who lived in Maryland for 15 years. Deported in March 2025 despite a 2019 court order protecting him from removal, Abrego Garcia landed in El Salvador’s notorious CECOT prison, known for housing gang members. Ivey, after coordinating with the U.S. ambassador, was denied entry, told to secure a permit in San Salvador, 90 minutes away. “They knew we were coming and why,” Ivey said, visibly frustrated outside the prison. The Supreme Court had ordered the Trump administration in April to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return, citing an “administrative error” in his deportation, but no progress has been made.

Abel Nuñez of CARECEN, who joined Ivey, said, “This is about a man’s life, not politics.” Jennifer Vasquez Sura, Abrego Garcia’s U.S.-citizen wife, added, “I just want to hear his voice.” The Trump administration insists Abrego Garcia is an MS-13 gang member, alleging domestic violence based on a 2020 protective order filed by Vasquez Sura, which she disputes. His lawyers deny gang ties, noting no criminal charges in the U.S. and a clean record as a sheet metal apprentice.

Abrego Garcia’s case began when ICE officers stopped him on March 12 while driving with his son in Maryland. Despite his protected status, granted due to gang threats in El Salvador, he was deported three days later under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act, alongside others labeled as gang members. The U.S. has paid El Salvador $6 million to detain deportees, per government disclosures. Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen met Abrego Garcia in April after initial denials, but El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele has refused his release, calling the idea “preposterous.” Ivey’s attempt, like Van Hollen’s early effort, faced stonewalling, with Salvadoran officials citing procedural hurdles.

For Vasquez Sura and their three children, the ordeal is crushing. “My kids ask when Dad’s coming home,” she said, her voice breaking. Maryland’s Latino community, rallied by CARECEN, feels betrayed. “Kilmar’s a worker, a father—not a criminal,” said a neighbor, Maria. Democrats, including Rep. Jamie Raskin, frame the case as a constitutional crisis, arguing the administration’s defiance of court orders threatens due process. Republicans, like Rep. Jason Smith, back the deportation, citing public safety and alleging gang ties, though courts have found no evidence.

The consequences ripple. Abrego Garcia’s detention in CECOT, now a lower-security facility, raises fears of mistreatment, with human rights groups alleging torture in Salvadoran prisons. The Supreme Court’s ruling hangs in limbo, with Justice Sonia Sotomayor warning that unchecked deportations could target citizens next. Maryland families, already shaken by a 2023 murder linked to an undocumented immigrant, are torn between safety concerns and outrage over due process violations.

Looking ahead, Ivey vows to press the administration, urging a single call from President Trump to resolve the case. Democrats plan more congressional visits, while the administration doubles down, with press secretary Karoline Leavitt stating Abrego Garcia “will never live in the U.S. again.” As legal battles unfold, Vasquez Sura clings to hope, her children’s drawings of their father a daily reminder of a family fractured by a bureaucratic error. Maryland watches, waiting for justice in a case that tests the nation’s values.

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