A Spanish-language journalist who spent seven months in immigration detention was deported to El Salvador on Friday, despite pending legal challenges and dismissed criminal charges.

Why It Matters: The deportation raises questions about press freedom and immigration enforcement, particularly for journalists covering law enforcement activities in immigrant communities.

📹 What Happened: 48-year-old Mario Guevara was arrested June 14 while livestreaming a protest outside Atlanta. Local police turned him over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement days later.

In a Facebook video posted Friday afternoon, Guevara appeared in El Salvador, escorted by government officials. He hugged a woman holding a camera phone. “Hello, Mom,” he said. He looked toward the sky. “My country, my country, my country. Thank God. This isn’t how I wanted to come to my country, but thank God.”

⚖️ The Legal Battle: The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declined Wednesday to halt a deportation order issued last month by the Board of Immigration Appeals.

All criminal charges filed against Guevara in DeKalb County and neighboring Gwinnett County were dismissed by prosecutors after his arrest. His attorneys argued he was being held in retaliation for his journalism work, in violation of his constitutional rights.

An immigration judge granted him bond in July, but he remained in custody while the government appealed.

📰 His Work: Guevara fled El Salvador two decades ago and built a large audience as a journalist in the Atlanta area. He worked for Mundo Hispanico, a Spanish-language newspaper, for years before launching MG News, a digital news outlet, a year ago.

He was livestreaming video from a “No Kings” rally protesting the Trump administration when local police arrested him. He is known for arriving at scenes where Immigration and Customs Enforcement or other law enforcement agencies are active, often after receiving tips from community members. He regularly livestreams what he sees on social media.

Video from his arrest shows Guevara wearing a bright red shirt under a protective vest with “PRESS” printed across his chest. “I’m a member of the media, officer,” he could be heard saying. He was standing on a sidewalk with other journalists, with no sign of large crowds or confrontations around him, moments before he was taken away.

🔄 The Immigration Case: An immigration case in 2012 denied Guevara’s request to remain in the U.S. He appealed to the Board of Immigration Appeals, but that appeal had not been decided when prosecutors agreed to administratively close the case. His lawyers say he has been authorized to live and work in the U.S. for the last 13 years.

Shortly after Guevara entered Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody in June, the government asked the Board of Immigration Appeals to reopen that old case. His lawyers didn’t oppose that move, but they asked that the case be sent back to the lower immigration court because he now has a pending application for a visa supported by his adult U.S. citizen son.

The Board of Immigration Appeals last month agreed to reopen the case, dismissed Guevara’s appeal and denied his request to return the case to the lower immigration court. It also ordered him deported to El Salvador and dismissed the government’s appeal of the bond ruling, saying it is now moot.

Guevara’s lawyers appealed to the 11th Circuit and asked that court to halt the deportation order while the appeal was pending. His lawyers argue that the Board of Immigration Appeals ruling and the subsequent refusal by the 11th Circuit to stay his deportation order are based on incorrect information.

⚖️ What’s Still Pending: A separate case challenged the constitutionality of Guevara’s detention in immigration custody and remains pending in federal court. His lawyers argued he was being punished for his journalism work and asked a judge to order him immediately released and order that he not be deported while that case was pending.