An Obama-appointed judge found Wednesday there is probable cause to hold the Trump administration in “criminal contempt.”
Judge James Boasberg wrote that the administration violated his March 15 order by sending two planes of alleged Tren de Aragua gang members to El Salvado after he issued a temporary restraining order (TRO).
“[T]he Court ultimately determines that the Government’s actions on that day demonstrate a willful disregard for its Order, sufficient for the Court to conclude that probable cause exists to find the Government in criminal contempt,” he wrote. “The Court does not reach such conclusion lightly or hastily; indeed, it has given Defendants ample opportunity to rectify or explain their actions.”
The Supreme Court tossed orders by Boasberg that prevented the administration from using the Alien Enemies Act to deport alleged gang members on April 7, finding the case should have been filed in Texas, not Washington, D.C. The Supreme Court’s finding “does not excuse the Government’s violation,” Boasberg wrote.
“The Constitution does not tolerate willful disobedience of judicial orders — especially by officials of a coordinate branch who have sworn an oath to uphold it,” he continued.
Boasberg wrote that the administration can avoid being held in contempt by “asserting custody of the individuals who were removed in violation of the Court’s classwide TRO so that they might avail themselves of their right to challenge their removability through a habeas proceeding.”
He directed the administration to file “a declaration explaining the steps they have taken and will take to do so” by April 23 to avoid contempt. Otherwise, he ordered them to file a declaration identifying who decided to let the planes take off.
“Once the dust Defendants kick up is cleared away, it is evident that the TRO merely did what courts consistently do: review and sometimes restrict Executive actions, including when the officials are overseas and the issues implicate national security or foreign affairs,” Boasberg wrote. “It in no way invaded any Article II powers, despite Defendants’ effort to incant new ones into existence. In any event, even if the TRO did somehow overstep the Court’s Article III power, Defendants cannot now evade a contempt charge on that basis.”
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