It’s not the first time a judge has lost patience with ICE/DHS, or other Trump minions for that matter but it seems to be happening on a regular basis now. What’s of particular interest is in this case it was a federal judge down in Florida who drove over ICE lawyers with a judicial steamroller!
It doesn’t even take a minute to read this article from Law and Crime but you’ll find it time well spent. This judge had already criticized the Trump administration’s lawyers multiple times and clearly he reached the breaking point in the case in question. The judge was fed up enough to slap around ICE lawyers with real consequences for their bullshittery, citing their “complete inability to follow judicial directions.” From the linked article:
A federal judge in Florida who has already called out the Trump administration multiple times for its failures in court has ordered Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to immediately release a man from detention as a consequence of the government’s “complete inability to follow judicial directions.”
U.S. District Judge Kyle Dudek’s latest rebuke of the administration came Thursday, when he granted the habeas corpus petition of Dmitrii Iastrebov and ordered his “immediate release” from detention after the government engaged in “a masterclass in litigation cynicism.”
“Last month, this Court ordered the Government to provide him with an individualized bond hearing under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a). This was after the Government conceded he was entitled to such relief. What happened next borders on the surreal,” Dudek explained. “Five days later, an immigration judge refused to hold the ordered hearing, claiming Iastrebov is not covered by § 1226(a) and thus ineligible for bond. Instead of defending this Court’s mandate, the Government’s counsel acquiesced in that refusal and waived any administrative appeal.”
“Now, faced with a renewed habeas petition, the Government casually announces that its previous concession ‘was in error’ and asks this Court to reverse itself and hold that Iastrebov is instead subject to mandatory detention under 8 U.S.C. § 1225,” the judge continued, calling that “request for a do-over” legally groundless.
I got a kick out of judge Dudek ripping ICE by saying they wanted a “do over.” He’d go on to put the administration On Blast for treating courts as a “testing lab” for “ever evolving gamesmanship.” Clearly he’s got Team Trump’s number and we can hope his smackdown comment goes viral within the judiciary. Including UP the chain. Say to John Roberts and his fellow fascist Justices at SCOTUS. Judge Duke had more to say about the government’s gamesmanship and lack of respect for judicial process and justice. Most importantly he shut down the case entirely. He ordered not just the release of the wrongfully detained man but ordered the case officially closed!
Looking at the whole thing I think the judge driving a steamroller over ice is an apt metaphor. If you’ve attended hockey games or ice skating competitions you’ve seen a Zamboni machine refurbish the ice during intermissions – smoothing it out. Creating a brand new pristine surface that is unblemished, like no skate had ever cut into it. That’s basically what ICE lawyers wanted the judge to do – reverse his earlier order and clean things up for a fresh ‘do over’ just like the skaters getting to go out onto fresh new ice. Instead of hopping into a judicial Zamboni the judge instead hopped into a judicial steamroller. It’s really quite something to watch an actual steam roller in action. I imagine driving one over an ice rink would leave nothing but a thin layer of water and crushed pipes that had been keeping the sheet of ice frozen!
Let’s hope more judges start acting like judge Dudek. There ARE others who’ve made it clear they’ve had it with Trump’s antics but we need more. We need them to grow to a critical mass and routinely swat away Team Trump’s legal bullshit the way they did in the aftermath of the 2020 election. Back then judge after judge told Trump’s lawyers not to waste court’s time unless they had actual admissible evidence. Out of some sixty or so cases Trump got a single ruling in his favor. ONE. Which was quickly overturned! Even judges HE had appointed called bullshit on him. So again, I hope like hell judge Dudek’s comments circulate through the judiciary and get other judges to make a point of slapping down Trump’s lawyers. HARD.
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