Minnesota judge summons acting ICE director, warns of contempt over court defiance | ICE (US Immigration and Customs Enforcement)
Minnesota’s top federal judge summoned the acting head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to appear before him on Friday and warned he could be held in contempt for allegedly defying court orders.
In a three-page order issued Monday evening, U.S. chief district judge Patrick Schiltz demanded that ICE leader Todd Lyons explain himself personally and declared that “the court’s patience has run out.”
The rebuke follows weeks of outrage over the Trump administration’s large-scale, aggressive and now deadly immigration enforcement campaign in Minneapolis-St Paul, dubbed “Operation Subway Surge.” The operation resulted in numerous emergency lawsuits by immigrants alleging unlawful arrest or detention, and judges consistently ruled in their favor.
Schiltz, who was appointed by George W Bush, accused the Trump administration of deliberately delaying or ignoring judicial directives in Minnesota federal courts. That order came in connection with a man he ordered released on Jan. 15 and who remained in custody as of Monday night.
The government’s failure to comply with those rules has caused “significant hardships” for immigrants, many of whom have been living and working legally in the United States for years, the judge said. He said detainees were sent to Texas when they should have stayed in Minnesota, or were released far from home with no way of returning.
Other Minnesota federal judges have expressed similar concerns. U.S. district judge Michael Davis, a Clinton appointee, accused the administration of trying to “defy court orders” and “deny noncitizens their due process rights.”
Many judges are now considering broader legal challenges that could significantly restrict federal immigration enforcement in Minnesota or halt Operation Metro Surge altogether. Another federal judge is considering whether the deployment of 3,000 immigration officers constitutes an unconstitutional occupation; This case gained momentum last week after Alex Pretti was fatally shot by federal officers.
U.S. district judge Kate Menendez ordered government lawyers to respond by Wednesday evening to allegations that the operation was aimed at punishing the state for its refugee policies.
Schiltz also clashed with the administration last week when federal prosecutors asked for Schiltz’s help in arresting former CNN host Don Lemon and others connected to an anti-ICE church protest. After the magistrate judge refused to dismiss the arrest warrants, the justice department appealed directly to the eighth circuit court of appeals.
The circuit court denied the government’s request, prompting Schiltz to write letters criticizing the justice department’s approach and noting the influx of “illegal” detention cases that have overwhelmed Minnesota courts.
