Overview
- Julie Le was removed from her temporary assignment to the U.S. Attorney’s Office after telling Judge Jerry Blackwell that “the system sucks” and saying she wished to be held in contempt so she could sleep.
- Blackwell warned that court directives are not optional, citing detainees kept in custody despite release orders, transfers to Texas and New Mexico, and conditions like ankle monitors that judges did not authorize.
- Chief Judge Patrick Schiltz has recorded 96 alleged instances of ICE violating court orders this year and has weighed contempt, reflecting escalating judicial scrutiny of federal enforcement in Minnesota.
- Le said she was assigned at least 88 cases in under a month without proper training and described “pulling teeth” to correct errors, while departures from the Minnesota U.S. Attorney’s Office compound staffing pressures.
- The Justice Department asserts it is complying with rulings and blames an overwhelming docket on judges, even as hundreds of habeas petitions tied to Operation Metro Surge continue to reach the federal court.