Abrego Garcia Case Delayed. Again.

This time, the Trump regime is invoking privilege over discovery demands.

If there’s one thing the Trump regime is good at besides crime, it’s delaying court proceedings that they’re likely to lose.

Last week, the government filed a motion in the Abrego Garcia case under seal. News reports, other court filings, and statements from Abrego Garcia’s lawyers indicate that the sealed filing asked Judge Xinis for a week-long pause of discovery to give the regime time to facilitate the release of Abrego Garcia.

After a week passed, the government filed another motion under seal, which the judge denied in an order laying out the rest of the discovery schedule.

Today, another motion was filed under seal - this time a joint filing - asking for a conference about discovery. In response, the judge issued the following order:

1. Parties' responses to the Motion to Intervene (ECF No. 108) are due by Tuesday, May 20, 2025. Any replies shall be filed by Tuesday, May 27, 2025. (This is the motion filed by media outlets to get all these sealed filings unsealed.)

2. The Court requires formal briefing of the Defendants' invocations of privilege, principally the state secrets and deliberative process privileges, as discussed in ECF No. 112 (That’s the joint sealed motion filed this morning.)

Accordingly, by Monday May 12, 2025, the parties shall submit simultaneous briefs, not to exceed 25 pages exclusive of exhibits, addressing the legal and factual bases for the invocation of those privileges, including Plaintiff's request for the Court to conduct in camera review of the withheld documents. On the same date, Defendants shall provide the privilege log discussed in ECF No. 112 to the Court.

3. The Court will hold an in-person hearing on Friday, May I6, 2025, at 1:00 PM in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, Greenbelt Division, Courtroom 2C, to address solely the matters raised in ECF No. 112 and the parties' supplemental briefing. (So that hearing will be about the privileges the government is trying to invoke.)

4. Pending resolution of matters raised in ECF No. 112, the Court suspends the previously imposed deadline for the Plaintiffs' supplement to their motion at ECF No. 62 and Defendants' response. The Court will reset those deadlines on or after the May 16 hearing. (Here, she’s suspending the discovery order until the privilege thing is worked out.)

Then the judge puts an end to the sealed filings things, requiring permission from the court first. She also says the sealed ECF 112 filing needs retroactive permission to remain under seal, otherwise she’s going to unseal it herself:

5. Lastly, as this litigation proceeds, the Court emphasizes the importance of transparency and adherence to procedural rules governing sealed filings. These standards apply equally to letter submissions and formal briefs. While provisional sealing was permitted in the early stages of this case to accommodate its expedited nature and to safeguard sensitive information, the parties must now strictly comply with the Court's Local Rules governing sealed filings. Under Local Rule 105.11, any proposed sealed document must be accompanied by a motion to seal. The motion to seal must include: (1) proposed reasons supported by specific factual representations that justify sealing, and (2) an explanation of why alternatives to sealing, such as redaction, would be inadequate. These requirements reflect the presumption of public access to judicial records, which may be overcome only with a compelling justification. Going forward, any filing submitted under seal without a compliant motion to seal will be stricken. As to the most recent filing at ECF No. 112, the proponent of sealing must file the motion to seal by no later than Friday, May 9, 2025, or the Court will unseal the document.

So once again, the government has successfully delayed the discovery proceedings in this case by attempting to invoke privilege. I’m assuming they really really really don’t want to release the agreement between El Salvador and the US because it likely shows that the US has constructive custody over the detainees at CECOT and nearby prisons. Additionally, it may include some shady shit like trading MS-13 gang members to keep them quiet about the Bukele regime. Meanwhile, a man is being unlawfully detained in a torture prison.

You can read Judge Xinis’ latest order here.

It’s important to note that the briefing on privilege that’s causing this delay is because the Trump regime is being AFFORDED DUE PROCESS - the very thing they’re trying to strip from Abrego Garcia.

~AG