Teen asylum seeker deported to El Salvador again, DHS defied court orders
A 19-year-old asylum seeker known in court records as E.L.A. was deported to El Salvador for a second time, leading a federal judge to hold DHS in contempt for violating three court orders.
Sep 1, 2026LACountry of origin: El Salvador
A teenage asylum seeker identified in court records as E.L.A., now 19, was deported to El Salvador for a second time, prompting a federal judge to hold the Department of Homeland Security in contempt on September 25 for violating three separate court orders in the class-action case J.O.P. v. DHS. He had first been removed in March 2026 after missing biometrics appointments in April and October 2025, then returned to the U.S. in June after class counsel arranged for his asylum case to proceed. A July 29 court order found the government had breached the settlement, but he was deported again in September, less than three weeks after DHS issued internal guidance meant to prevent such removals.
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Sources
- Judge presses DHS after teen deported despite order: 'who was responsible?'
Newsweek·Sep 4, 2026·archived copy
- Davis Vanguard
- Three Orders, Two Deportations, One Contempt Finding: A Judge Rules DHS Broke Its Word to a Young Asylum Seeker Again
Ask Why News·Sep 29, 2026
- First at TPM: Teen Deported TWICE This Year in Violation of Multiple Court Orders
Talking Points Memo·Sep 3, 2026
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