KILMAR ABReGO GarcIa moved to America illegally when he was 16. His lawyers say his parents sent him north after a gang in El Salvador threatened to kidnap him and rape his sisters. Eight years after coming to America, he was detained while looking for work in a Home Depot car park. Maryland’s police thought he might be a gang member, though that claim was never tested in court. His case was heard by an immigration judge, who denied Mr Abrego Garcia’s asylum claim. But the judge ruled that he could not be deported because he had a well-founded fear of persecution, and so he was released. This is how the law works in America: it can be slow, evidence is not always clear and judgments can frustrate everyone.

LeadersDonald TrumpUnited States

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