The WatchlistWatch 8
This is a Watchlist entry. It is a developing story reported by credible outlets that hasn't reached a court ruling, official finding or documented harm yet. It says what to watch for. If that happens, it moves to The Record.
DOJ files misconduct complaint against nearly all of Minnesota's federal judges
Developing means: Reported by credible outlets, but no ruling, official finding or documented harm yet.
The Justice Department accused all but one of Minnesota's active federal judges of misconduct for speaking to the New York Times about how Operation Metro Surge overwhelmed their court.
What happened
In the interviews, Judge Patrick Schiltz, until recently the district's chief judge, described ICE's repeated violations of court orders, 96 in January alone, and the judges called the surge a grave threat to the rule of law. The complaint asks the Eighth Circuit to investigate and to remove the judges from every case involving Homeland Security. The court says its judges acted well within federal judicial ethics rules, and Minnesota's attorney general called the complaint an attack on judicial independence. Schiltz is also the judge who in June threw out the department's grand jury subpoenas to Walz, Frey and other Minnesota officials as retaliatory.
What to watch for
Whether the Eighth Circuit opens an investigation or dismisses the complaint, and whether any judge is pushed off immigration cases.
The administration's side
Attorney General Todd Blanche says the judges flagrantly violated the judicial code by commenting on pending cases and showed obvious bias against Homeland Security.
Sources
Permanent link: https://unredactedrecord.com/e/w-judges/