Federal judge — a Scalia protege — again rips ICE for ignoring court orders in Minnesota

Patrick J. Schiltz, chief judge of the federal district court in Minnesota and a former clerk to conservative icon Antonin Scalia, ripped the Trump administration for ignoring dozens of court orders in a ruling Wednesday.

Schiltz had previously demanded to see U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Acting Director Todd Lyons for a Friday contempt proceeding.

After ICE released a detainee identified in court documents as Juan T.R., Schiltz canceled the hearing but also blasted the government for undermining the rule of law by ignoring judicial orders.

“That does not end the court’s concerns, however,” he wrote, attaching an appendix identifying 96 court orders that ICE violated in 74 cases.

“The extent of ICE’s noncompliance is almost certainly substantially understated,” he continued. “This list should give pause to anyone — no matter his or her political beliefs — who cares about the rule of law.”

Schiltz is a noted figure in conservative legal circles, making his sharp order all the more notable. He was appointed by former President George W. Bush.

The last straw for Schiltz was the officials’ failure to follow a Jan. 14 order to grant a timely bond hearing for Juan T.R., who Schiltz said remained in custody as of Friday. The Monday order excoriated Lyons and his colleagues for causing “significant hardship” for Minnesota residents caught up in the federal dragnet, many of whom “have lawfully lived and worked in the United States for years and done absolutely nothing wrong,” he emphasized.

Schiltz described scenarios in which detainees were held longer than necessary; removed to detention facilities elsewhere in the country; or released hundreds or even thousands of miles from home with no arrangements made for their return.