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DOJ asks for intermission successful Abrego Garcia lawsuit
President Trump has repeatedly shared an representation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia's digit tattoos successful an effort to nexus the Maryland man, who was mistakenly deported to El Salvador connected March 15, to the notorious MS-13 gang.
On Monday, Mr. Trump again shared a photograph of Abrego Garcia's near manus connected social media, alleging helium "had 'MS-13' tattooed onto his knuckles." The representation shows the characters "M," "S," "1" and "3" digitally added supra Abrego Garcia's existing tattoos — a leaf, a smiley face, a transverse and a skull — on with labels describing each awesome beneath.
Many radical online recognized the labels arsenic digitally added, but immoderate alleged they were designed to look arsenic portion of Abrego Garcia's existent tattoos and accused the Trump medication of trying to mislead the public. The White House has not responded to aggregate requests for remark astir the representation and who added the labels.
The experts and researchers we spoke with acknowledged the tattoos could transportation gang-related symbolism, but they said the markings unsocial are not reliable indicators of membership. They besides formed uncertainty connected Trump's claims that the marijuana leafage represents an "M," the smiley look "S," the transverse "1" and the skull "3."
Abrego Garcia has nary transgression grounds and his household says helium was ne'er progressive with a gang.
He was deported and sent to El Salvador's notorious mega-prison, designed to clasp the astir unsafe pack members, earlier being moved to another facility arsenic his lawsuit attracted widespread attention. As legal efforts to bring him backmost to the U.S. continue, the Trump medication has cited Abrego Garcia's digit tattoos arsenic grounds of alleged MS-13 affiliation.
Roberto Lovato, an adjunct prof astatine University of Nevada, Las Vegas, whose memoir chronicled increasing up successful California during MS-13's aboriginal years, said though symbols are "notoriously hard to interpret," helium does not judge Abrego Garcia's tattoos are suggestive of MS-13 membership.
Lovato besides said existent pack members helium has spoken to bash not judge Abrego Garcia's tattoos correspond MS-13.
Maya Barak, an subordinate prof of transgression justness studies astatine the University of Michigan-Dearborn, told CBS News that tattoos specified arsenic devil horns, the letters "M" and "S" and the numbers "1" and "3" person been utilized by MS-13 members. The National Gang Center and FBI some cited variations of "MS," "13" and devil horns arsenic tattoos associated with MS-13.
A assemblage activist, who spoke connected the information of anonymity for fearfulness of retribution, told CBS News helium has worked with pack members for much than 25 years and has ne'er seen a bid of digit tattoos similar Abrego Garcia's linked to MS-13.
The Trump administration's "border czar" Tom Homan told ABC News "you can't disregard a tattoo" but said radical are not being labeled arsenic pack members strictly based connected their tattoos.
"It's based connected a batch of different things, but tattoos, 1 of many. But nary one's removed conscionable due to the fact that of a tattoo," Homan said connected ABC's "This Week."
Difficulties accurately identifying pack members
Days earlier Mr. Trump shared the photo, different X accounts posted the aforesaid mentation of Abrego Garcia's tattoos, garnering hundreds of thousands of views.
David Kennedy, a prof of transgression justness astatine John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said identifying idiosyncratic arsenic a pack subordinate is not a elemental process and often requires a multi-pronged approach.
"I'm not alert of immoderate statutory model that relies conscionable connected tattoos oregon honestly connected immoderate 1 azygous aspect," Kennedy said.
Lovato agreed that utilizing the tattoos unsocial arsenic grounds "would not clasp h2o successful a tribunal of law."
Kennedy besides noted the transient quality of pack rank arsenic different hurdle to identifying progressive members.
"Even if we instrumentality the tattoos to beryllium indicative of MS-13 membership, that's precise often not a imperishable presumption and radical halt being progressive [in the gang]," Kennedy said.
Maya Barak co-authored a study that highlighted the imaginable for mislabeling radical arsenic MS-13 members based connected their perceived contention oregon migration presumption arsenic good arsenic their benignant of formal and tattoos.
Multiple experts pointed retired that immoderate symbols utilized by gangs — specified arsenic devils oregon skulls — are besides often utilized by the wide population.
"As with different pack subcultures successful the U.S., MS-13 pack civilization has been somewhat commodified and go portion of fashionable culture," Barak said.
- In:
- MS-13
- Donald Trump
Layla Ferris is simply a verification shaper with CBS News Confirmed. She antecedently worked astatine ABC News and Storyful. She specializes successful breaking quality coverage, ocular verification and open-source research.
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