KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — Diego Hernandez Garcia is now facing deportation after a federal judge denied his latest effort to remain in the country following his detainment during an ICE raid in Knoxville.Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained the 24-year-old Hernandez Garcia during a raid at a Knoxville construction site on December 11. U.S. District Judge Clifton Corker on Friday denied his habeus corpus petition and lifted a stay on a 2016 removal order. The petition was dismissed without prejudice, meaning that the decision could be appealed. A statement from his attorney said that they are disappointed in the court’s decision and would evaluate options for what comes next. Knoxville contractor accused of impeding ICE seeks dismissal, says witnesses deported Corker had granted an emergency order allowing Hernandez Garcia to remain in the country while the case was resolved but he was put on a plane to El Salvador on December 23. A move that was reversed hours later, with a US attorney telling Corker in an email that Hernandez Garcia was “inadvertently” put on the plane. An ICE spokesperson previously told 6 News that Hernandez Garcia had an approved I-360 petition for a path to lawful permanent status.He entered the US as a child with his mother and applied for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status and deferred action to delay immigration enforcement. He was granted protective status in 2022 through May 12, 2026. The order also authorized him to obtain lawful employment. PREVIOUS: ‘Flipped our family life upside down’ Friend of man detained in Knoxville speaks out “Hernandez Garcia is an illegal alien from El Salvador with a removal order and no legal status to remain in the United States,” ICE Public Affairs Officer Angelina Vicknair said in a statement. “He entered the U.S. in 2015 and has an outstanding order of removal from 2016. Although Hernandez Garcia has an approved I-360 petition for a path to status, the fact remains that he does not have status currently- but what he does have is a removal order.Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WATE 6 On Your Side.