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2d ago

DHS Public Affairs Chief Decries Abrego Garcia TikToks Despite Court Gag Order

Her post renews scrutiny of court limits on agency speech in a case already postponed for a vindictiveness hearing.

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - DECEMBER 12: Kilmar Abrego Garcia speaks to supporters as he arrives for his first check-in at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Baltimore Field Office the day after a federal judge ordered his release from a detention in Pennsylvania, on December 12, 2025 in Baltimore, Maryland. An undocumented immigrant who had been living in the United States since 2011, Abrego Garcia was detained by federal agents and deported to the CECOT prison in El Salvador in March 2025, which the Trump Administration called "an administrative error." (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Kilmar Abrego Garcia arrives at the United States District Court District of Maryland, on December 22, 2025, in Greenbelt, Maryland.
GREENBELT, MARYLAND - DECEMBER 22: Kilmar Abrego Garcia arrives with his wife Jennifer Vasquez Sura and his attorney Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg at U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland on December 22, 2025 in Greenbelt, Maryland. Abrego Garcia, a longtime Maryland resident who was deported to the high-security CECOT prison in El Salvador, then sent back to the U.S. and released after the court found his detention unlawful, attended a hearing on whether Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) may re-detain him. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
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Overview

  • Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin wrote on X that DHS is under a gag order by an “activist judge” while Kilmar Abrego Garcia is “making TikToks,” calling the situation unfair to law enforcement.
  • A federal judge in Tennessee previously restricted DHS and DOJ from making prejudicial public statements about Abrego Garcia’s criminal case to protect his right to a fair trial.
  • Abrego Garcia recently posted two TikTok videos lip‑syncing to Spanish‑language songs that drew large view counts, and the clips did not address his legal matters.
  • He remains out of immigration custody in Maryland under a court order after U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis extended a temporary restraining order barring ICE from re‑detaining him.
  • His criminal trial was canceled, with a late‑January hearing set to examine alleged vindictive prosecution, and some outlets reported that DHS’s public remarks may conflict with the gag restrictions.