Judge tells U.S. Attorney he hasn't ruled out imprisonment over ICE conduct
Federal judge threatens jail for prosecutors if they violate orders
The chief federal judge in Minnesota is threatening to put federal prosecutors in jail if they continue to violate court orders. This comes as the number of court cases stemming from ICE's Operation Metro Surge continues piling up.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - In ordering the sprawling contempt hearing, U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey Bryan demanded the appearance of U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen as well as an ICE administrator with direct knowledge of what happened in the more than two dozen cases.
U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen ordered to court
What we know:
U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey Bryan told the U.S. Attorney for Minnesota Tuesday that he hadn't "ruled out the consequence of imprisonment" for his office's repeated violations of court orders.
Bryan started the hearing by calling it "an extraordinary measure," and it would be a "historic low point" for the U.S. Attorney’s office if he held anyone in contempt, according to the Associated Press.
However, the judge admitted that the outcome was unlikely and told Rosen it's something he doesn't want to do, but made it clear that all outcomes were on the table.
The court hearing was fiery, including a testy back and forth between Rosen and the judge over the first twenty minutes of the hearing.
At one point, Rosen accused the judge of smearing him.
The hearing was then placed into recess as Judge Bryan gave government lawyers time to meet with immigration attorneys and determine which cases are resolved and could be removed from the proceedings.
Rosen appeared in court less than a week after he was publicly rebuked by Chief U.S. District Judge Patrick Schiltz for the government's repeated violations of judicial orders.
Schiltz characterized Rosen's response to those violations as an "attack" on the courts.
Judge Bryan demanded Rosen appear on Tuesday because "the Court cannot ignore" the government's unlawful conduct.
ICE operation overwhelms U.S. Attorney's Office
The backstory:
Minnesota’s federal district courts have been swamped by an explosion in civil litigation related to Operation Metro Surge.
More than 1,000 habeas cases have been filed by detained immigrants claiming unlawful arrest by federal agents.
Judges, including Bryan, have overwhelmingly sided with the immigrant petitioners.
They have ordered their immediate release from ICE custody or at the very least, provided them a bond hearing in Immigration court so the individuals can fight their deportation cases while free from detention.
Federal judge blasts U.S. Attorney
Dig deeper:
The mountains of litigation have strained the court system and the depleted U.S. Attorney’s Office, which has lost nearly half of its legal team since the start of President Trump’s second administration last year.
Judges have cited the government for civil contempt twice and imposed financial consequences for violations of its court orders.
In an email, Rosen privately challenged Judge Schiltz while downplaying the number and seriousness of the violations, according to court filings.
Rosen said the attorneys in his office "didn't deserve it."
That led to a rare public rebuke of the U.S. Attorney.
What they're saying:
"The judges of this District have been extraordinarily patient with the government attorneys, recognizing that they have been put in an impossible position by Rosen and his superiors in the Department of Justice," wrote Schiltz, a Republican presidential appointee. "What those attorneys ‘didn’t deserve’ was the Administration sending 3000 ICE agents to Minnesota to detain people without making any provision for handling the hundreds of lawsuits that were sure to follow."
Schiltz said at the time, that the number of court orders had doubled to more than 200 since January.
"The Court is not aware of another occasion in the history of the United States in which a federal court has had to threaten contempt—again and again and again—to force the United States government to comply with court orders," wrote Schiltz.
Schiltz wrote that the court would consider criminal contempt consequences for Trump administration officials if orders continued to be violated.
"This Court will continue to do whatever is required to protect the rule of law, including, if necessary, moving to the use of criminal contempt. One way or another, ICE will comply with this Court’s orders," wrote Schiltz.