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Contempt hearing for US Attorney Daniel Rosen
U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen had his second contempt hearing in one week Thursday. FOX 9's Paul Blume has more .
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen appeared in federal court again on Thursday as federal judges weigh contempt charges against government officials due to ongoing court violations linked to Operation Metro Surge.
Senior District Court Judge John Tunheim ordered the hearing in connection to half-a-dozen immigration cases where the government is accused of violating orders to immediately return personal belongings to individuals who were unlawfully arrested.
"I am painfully aware of the court's concerns on that," Rosen said.
Rosen explained that belongings were sometimes left behind because ICE prioritized returning detainees to Minnesota and releasing them by the court's deadline.
He said ICE was constantly instituting new procedures which led to some of the confusion.
"Mistakes have been made, but it’s a far, far cry from contempt of court," Rosen said.
Rosen explained it is unlikely for those errors to continue now that the surge is over, calling it a "product of the numbers" from the operation.
ICE and attorneys for the Department of Justice (DOJ) have consistently blamed the unprecedented number of court violations on the flood of immigration cases that overwhelmed the government. Judges have grown tired of those excuses, according to numerous court rulings.
But Judge Tunheim said Thursday the transparency and communication from the U.S. Attorney's Office was appreciated.
Often times "we don’t hear anything," Tunheim added.
Rosen has already clashed with other judges over his office’s response to an explosion in civil litigation from ICE operations in Minnesota.
Rosen has been forced to explain why ICE has violated more than 200 court orders since the beginning of the year.
Rosen ordered to appear twice in same week
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US Attorney heading back to court over violations
Federal judges in Minnesota are weighing contempt charges against government officials due to ongoing court violations linked to Operation Metro Surge.
The backstory:
This was the second time this week Rosen was ordered to appear in court.
On Tuesday, Rosen was in front of a separate judge facing similar contempt threats over government noncompliance with court orders.
In a testy hearing that lasted all day, Rosen defended his office's actions related to the litigation involving ICE.
Judge Jeffrey Bryan, however, has not ruled out imprisonment as a potential consequence for the government's continued violations of court orders, although he acknowledged such a result is unlikely.
Judge Bryan is expected to issue a ruling in the coming days.