Attorneys for Abrego Garcia: Please Keep Him Locked Up

Attorneys for a man caught up in one of the bigger deportation controversies have made an unusual request of the judge: They want their client, Kilmar Abrego Garcia, to remain locked up in Tennessee instead of being released, reports the AP. The reason? They fear he'll be arrested by federal agents and shipped out of the country even as his case winds through the courts.

• "The irony of this request is not lost on anyone," the attorneys wrote.

Abrego Garcia is a native of El Salvador who has lived in Maryland with his wife, a US citizen, and three children. He was deported to El Salvador in March, only to be returned this month after a Supreme Court order. Abrego Garcia now faces smuggling charges, and a federal judge in Nashville is considering whether to release him as he awaits trial on those charges. The White House has denied a report that it intends to deport Abrego Garcia a second time before the trial, reports Axios. His attorneys, however, apparently don't want to take the risk.