Authorities have recently relied on the release of information about his alleged domestic abuse. The audio files are from one of these court hearings.
Kilmer Abrego Garcia’s wife sought a protection order in 2020
Audio portrays Jennifer Vasquez Sula, the wife of Kilmer Abrego Garcia, and in 2020 he appeals to a judge for temporary protection from his husband.
Audio obtained by USA Today from a 2020 court hearing in Maryland shows that Jennifer Vasquez Sula appealed to the judge for temporary protection from her husband, Kilmer Abrego Garcia.
“I grabbed me from my hair and then he slapped me,” Vasquez Sula told the judge in his 2020 testimony.
For weeks, the White House and Homeland Security officials expelled their 29-year-old Maryland father to Salvador’s prison.
The Trump administration claims he is a member of the MS-13 gang, However, federal judges question the strength of the government’s evidence. Abrego Garcia denied being a gang member and has not been criminally convicted.
Authorities have recently relied on the release of information about his alleged domestic abuse. The audio files are from one of these court hearings.
“An audio clip from a civil court hearing in connection with the protection order I recently filed has been released. I will grant the protection order previously and work on the personal and painful parts of my life and Kilmer’s life again. Neither of us were in a good place at the time,” Vazquez Sula told USA in a May 1 statement.
She added: “My husband was hurt from the time he spent in ice detention. We were in Covid’s suffering. Like many couples, we were caring for our children.
Judicial testimony explains suspicious abuse
On April 16, DHS officials distributed a restraining order petition from 2021. On April 30, a 2020 Maryland Court petition was announced by DHS, depicting allegations of violence against Abrego Garcia.
In an August 2020 recording before Judge Ada Clark Edward, Vazquez Sula details how Abrego Garcia was detained and ice custody throughout her 2019 pregnancy but brought the changed person back home.
“He changed a lot with me and my kids, just like a month after he went out after he came out,” Vasquez Sula told the judge. “He’ll yell at them, shout anything at me, and shout little things.”
In 2021, Vazquez Sula applied for a second protective order, citing cases of violence in 2019, 2020 and 2021.
Abrego Garcia “punches and scratched” Vasquez Sula, tore her shirt, grabbing and hurting her, she said in 2021.
Police have not indicted Abrego Garcia for domestic violence.
The Battle of the Supreme Court
Maryland sheet metal worker Abrego Garcia was pulled by immigrants and customs enforcement agents while driving with his 5-year-old son on March 12.
In 2019, an immigration judge ruled that Abrego Garcia could not be deported to El Salvador because he had “a basis for fear of future persecution.”
A US district judge ordered the Trump administration to return him. The US Supreme Court cut the order and ordered the administration to “promote” the release of Abrego Garcia.
Abrego Garcia: A popular cause
Abrego Garcia’s illegal deportation and refusal to return him to the US became a focus for him to oppose the Trump administration’s deportation program.
D-Md. Senator Chris Van Hollen visited Abrego Garcia in El Salvador, and several members of the House Democrats also went to El Salvador to ask for his release.
May 1st, Officer Van Hollen, Tim Kane, D-Va. , Alex Padilla, D-CA, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (DN.Y.), announced that he would submit a resolution requesting the State Department to issue a report on El Salvador’s human rights records.
At a press conference announcing the move, Van Hollen said his support for Abrego Garcia revolves around the Supreme Court order to promote his return.
“We don’t guarantee Kilmer Abrego Garcia,” Van Hollen said. “We guarantee his constitutional rights because if you trample on his constitutional rights, you will threaten them for all Americans living in America.”
DHS: “Violent and illegal aliens”
DHS officials used newly emerged allegations as reasons to strengthen deportation claims.
“The facts are clear. Kilmer Abrego Garcia is a violent, illegal alien who abuses women and children. He was not doing business in our country, so we are proud to have deported this violent thug,” Deputy Director Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement.
“In addition to the fact that he entered the country illegally and is a confirmed member of MS-13, we also found two petitions for protection against him,” McLaughlin said. “Our country is safer because he’s gone.”
Maryland District Judge Paula Sinis has rebutted evidence submitted by the government that Abrego Garcia is a member of the MS-13 gang.
“No one is perfect, and marriage is not perfect,” Vasquz Sura said in a statement. “I never imagined that the lowest moment in our relationship would be weaponized to demonize my husband’s character, violate his legal rights, or used as justification to rebel against the court.”
“Kilmer is my beloved partner and father, and I will continue to stand by him, fight for justice, and demand return to his loved ones,” she said.
