U.S. District Judge Thomas Cullen dismissed the Justice Department's attempt to sue Maryland federal judges over a court-ordered pause in deportation proceedings. Chief Judge George Russell issued an order requiring an automatic two-day pause in deportation cases amid efforts to speed removals. The Justice Department argued the pause functioned as a sweeping injunction against federal action without individualized assessment of claims. Cullen emphasized that a lawsuit by the executive against the judiciary for exercising judicial power is extraordinary. Cullen also criticized a concerted executive effort to smear and impugn judges who rule against the administration.
U.S. District Judge Thomas Cullen, brought in from Virginia to handle the case, dismissed the Trump administration's attempt to sue every federal judge in Maryland over a rule slowing deportations. Much as the Executive fights the characterization, a lawsuit by the executive branch of government against the judicial branch for the exercise of judicial power is not ordinary, Cullen wrote in his decision, adding that the administration's decision to choose a more confrontational path was no surprise.
Indeed, over the past several months, principal officers of the Executive (and their spokespersons) have described federal district judges across the country as left-wing, liberal, activists, radical, politically minded, rogue, unhinged, outrageous, overzealous, [and] unconstitutional, [c]rooked, and worse. Although some tension between the coordinate branches of government is a hallmark of our constitutional system, this concerted effort by the Executive to smear and impugn individual judges who rule against it is both unprecedented and unfortunate.
The dispute stemmed from an order issued in May by Chief Judge George Russell, requiring Maryland judges to impose an automatic two-day pause in deportation cases. Russell's measure came amid an aggressive push by the Trump administration to accelerate removals, in some instances before migrants could contest their cases. The Justice Department argued the order amounted to a sweeping injunction against federal action, imposed without assessing individual claims.
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