Lawyers for Kilmar Abrego Garcia asked a federal judge on Tuesday to dismiss a human smuggling case against him, saying the government was prosecuting the Maryland construction worker to punish him for challenging his removal to El Salvador.

Their motion filed in court said attempts to dismiss indictments on the grounds of “selective or vindictive prosecution” are infrequent and rarely succeed, “but if there has ever been a case for dismissal on those grounds, this is that case.”

The attorneys said senior cabinet members, Justice Department leaders and President Donald Trump mounted unprecedented public attacks on Abrego Garcia and that “vindictiveness is clear from the record.”

Acting U.S. Attorney Robert E. McGuire in Tennessee, where Abrego Garcia is in jail, said in an email prosecutors would have no other comment beyond what they file in response to the motion. No prosecutor response was filed as of late Tuesday.

Abrego Garcia became a prominent face in the debate over Trump’s immigration policies following his wrongful expulsion to El Salvador in March. Trump’s administration violated a U.S. immigration judge’s order in 2019 that shields Abrego Garcia from deportation to El Salvador because he likely faces threats of gang violence there.

The administration claimed Abrego Garcia was in the MS-13 gang, although he wasn’t charged and has repeatedly denied the allegation. Facing mounting pressure and a U.S. Supreme Court order, the Trump administration returned Abrego Garcia to the U.S. in June to face the smuggling charges, which his attorneys have called “preposterous.”

Tuesday's motion alleged the government was trying to paint Abrego Garcia as a criminal to punish him for challenging his removal to El Salvador and to avoid “the embarrassment of accepting responsibility for its unlawful conduct." The motion said the government also aimed to change public opinion about Abrego Garcia's deportation.

Abrego Garcia’s attorneys asked the court at least to order a hearing on the government’s motives.

The smuggling case stems from a 2022 traffic stop for speeding, during which Abrego Garcia was driving a vehicle with nine passengers. Police in Tennessee suspected human smuggling, but he was allowed to drive on.

A federal judge in Maryland last month prohibited the Trump administration from taking Abrego Garcia into immediate immigration custody if he’s released from jail. The judge ordered the government to provide three business days notice if Immigration and Customs Enforcement intends to initiate deportation proceedings against him.