A federal judge in California has ordered the immediate release of David Antonio Aviles Perez, a member of the MS-13 gang convicted in El Salvador for an execution-style murder, citing procedural violations in his immigration detention. U.S. District Judge Jinsook Ohta ruled that immigration officials held Aviles Perez for five months without providing a bond hearing or conducting an individualized determination of his danger to the public or flight risk. The ruling has drawn sharp criticism from the Trump administration, which views the release as a failure of immigration enforcement, while legal analysts note the decision rests on constitutional due process requirements rather than the merits of the criminal conviction.
What the Right Is Saying
Conservative officials and the Trump administration have condemned the release, framing it as a danger to public safety driven by judicial activism. DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin stated that the judge "put American lives at risk by releasing a wanted murderer." Mullin emphasized that this is the second time Aviles Perez has been released in California, attributing the outcome to "sanctuary politicians" who prioritize ideology over security.
Critics on the right argue that the ruling undermines efforts to deport violent criminals and highlights the limitations imposed by sanctuary policies in California. They contend that individuals convicted of aggravated murder abroad, particularly those with active gang affiliations, should not be released into U.S. communities pending removal proceedings. The administration views the lack of cooperation between local law enforcement and federal immigration agents, exacerbated by state laws, as a systemic failure that allows dangerous individuals to evade deportation.
What the Left Is Saying
Supporters of the ruling argue that it upholds fundamental constitutional protections against arbitrary government detention. The decision emphasizes that even individuals with criminal histories are entitled to due process under the Fifth Amendment. Judge Ohta noted that the government failed to provide evidence that it considered Aviles Perez's specific circumstances when deciding to detain him, stating, "the government has offered no evidence that it detained him after considering those facts and making an individualized determination of his danger to the public or flight risk."
Legal advocates and progressive commentators view the ruling as a check on executive overreach in immigration matters. They argue that blanket detention policies without individualized hearings disproportionately affect immigrants and ignore the legal standards established in prior Supreme Court precedents. The perspective highlights that the judge did not clear Aviles Perez of wrongdoing but strictly enforced the requirement that the government justify detention with specific, individualized findings rather than generalized assumptions about gang membership.
What the Numbers Show
Aviles Perez, 35, was convicted in absentia in El Salvador in December 2025 and sentenced to 20 years for aggravated murder related to a 2014 incident in La Unión. Prosecutors stated he and another gang member chased a victim, forced him to kneel, and shot him multiple times. Aviles Perez was arrested in Monterey, California, in 2023 after allegedly swinging a machete at a homeless man, an incident that led to a conviction and subsequent release due to sanctuary laws.
He was arrested a second time by ICE in San Diego on March 26, 2026, and held at the Otay Mesa Detention Center. He remained in federal custody for approximately five months until Judge Ohta ordered his release on August 26, 2026. Judge Ohta was appointed to the San Diego County Superior Court by California Governor Gavin Newsom in December 2020 and later nominated to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California by former President Joe Biden in September 2021, with Senate confirmation in December 2021.
The Bottom Line
The case underscores the ongoing legal tension between federal immigration enforcement powers and constitutional due process requirements. While the release does not negate Aviles Perez's criminal conviction in El Salvador, it highlights the procedural hurdles ICE faces when detaining individuals without individualized bond hearings. The Trump administration is expected to challenge the interpretation of detention authority, while legal experts watch to see if this ruling will influence broader policies on immigration detention across the country.