Supreme Court pauses order requiring deported Maryland man be returned to U.S.

• The Trump administration had asked the high court to get rid of the Monday deadline set by U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis to return Abrego Garcia to the U.S., repeating their accusations that he's a member of MS-13.
• Abrego Garcia, who was legally living in Maryland, has not been convicted of gang-related crimes.
• The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals earlier Monday refused to block Xinis' order.

The latest: Abrego Garcia's lawyers argued in their response filed Monday evening that there is no credible reason for the U.S. government to withhold his return, as it was their error that led to Abrego Garcia's deportment.

• The response also disputes the Department of Justice's claim that it is "powerless to correct its error," writing that the federal government has not said "that doing so would cause it any harm."
• "That is because the only one harmed by the current state of affairs is Abrego Garcia," his lawyers wrote.

Context: Abrego Garcia was detained by immigration officials and erroneously deported despite a court order saying he could remain in the U.S. because of a likelihood of harm in El Salvador.

• He was wrongly told last month by immigration agents that his status had changed.
• His wife, a U.S. citizen, identified him after seeing a news article that featured a picture of detainees entering the notorious Center for Terrorism Confinement (CECOT) prison in El Salvador.
• Justice Department attorneys conceded that he was removed to El Salvador because of an "administrative error."

Editor's note: This story has been updated with additional information throughout.