Who Is Paula Xinis? The Federal Judge Taking On Trump Over a Mistaken Deportation.
The US Supreme Court has ruled unanimously that the Trump administration must facilitate the return of a Maryland man who was mistakenly deported to a high-security prison in El Salvador.
In a unanimous 9-0 decision, the justices chose not to obstruct a lower court's directive aimed at "facilitating" the return of Kilmar Ábrego García, while also indicating that Judge Paula Xinis may have overstepped her jurisdiction. On Friday, Judge Xinis instructed the Trump administration to provide her with daily reports regarding the measures being taken to reinstate Mr. Ábrego García in the United States.
The government has acknowledged that Mr. Ábrego García was deported due to an "administrative error," although it also claims he is affiliated with the MS-13 gang, a point his attorney disputes. Mr. Ábrego García, a Salvadoran national, is among several alleged gang member migrants who were transported by the U.S. on military aircraft last month to El Salvador's infamous Cecot (Terrorism Confinement Centre) as part of an agreement between the two nations. In light of the Supreme Court's ruling, attorneys for the Trump administration appeared before Judge Xinis in the Maryland district court on Friday to outline their plan for Mr. Ábrego García's release.
Who Is Paula Xinis?
Judge Paula Xinis delivered a scathing rebuke. “Wholly illegal from the moment it happened,” Describing the Trump administration’s wrongful deportation of a Maryland man — a U.S. resident and husband of an American citizen — to a high-security prison in El Salvador.
Several hours later, in her Maryland courtroom, Xinis addressed the government’s attorneys, expressing her desire for updates regarding Kilmar Abrego Garcia's whereabouts and the government's plans to bring him back to the United States. This followed a ruling she had made a week prior, which was supported by the Supreme Court on Thursday.
“You can tell me what you can, what you can’t, and why,” she said. “But we’re going to make a record of what, if anything, the government is doing or not doing.”
Who is U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis?
Xinis was appointed to her role in 2015 by President Barack Obama and received Senate confirmation the following year with a vote of 53-34. Hailing from Mineola, New York, she graduated from Vassar College and the University of Virginia in 1991, achieving “highest distinction,” as noted in her U.S. District Court biography.
She later earned her law degree from Yale Law School in 1997 and completed a clerkship with Circuit Judge Diana Gribbon Motz of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Motz praised Xinis, stating, “She was an extraordinarily able young lawyer, and I believe she’s an extraordinarily able district judge. She is thorough, writes clearly, and has excellent judgment.” Now a senior judge, Motz described Xinis as “totally forthright” and “easy to work with,” highlighting her lack of the ego often seen in high-achieving clerks.
During a time of strong opinions on various legal matters, Motz noted that Xinis was not rigid in her views. “It’s important to recognize the pressure she must have faced to conform, to be more centrist or favorable to the administration, yet she has remained true to her beliefs,” Motz remarked. “That’s what we expect from judges—not to be influenced by political perspectives. I believe she exemplifies how judges should behave, and in my experience, she has consistently acted this way.” Following her clerkship with Motz, Xinis served as a lawyer for the Office of the Federal Public Defender in Maryland, as detailed in her District Court biography. In that role, she was the research and writing attorney supervisor and director of training, and she lectured on subjects including effective sentencing mitigation, changes to the U.S. sentencing guidelines, and appellate advocacy.
She then entered private practice, joining the Baltimore firm of Murphy, Falcon & Murphy, becoming a partner in 2013. She handled complex civil actions and, in time, drew the ire of police in the city that would surface in her nomination process.
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