The Sonoma County Sheriff's Office must comply with subpoenas issued by the county's civilian oversight board as part of a whistleblower investigation into alleged misconduct, a state appeals court ruled Thursday.
Due to his "lack of experience," he said, he had misunderstood federal immigration jargon and believed that De La Garza's residency bid had been denied - though it hadn't. He repeated his misunderstanding on a form that government attorneys cited in court to justify the detention. On the same form, he also wrongly reported that De La Garza had admitted to illegally entering the country in 2015.
The case centers on reimbursement requests submitted by local governments under federal migrant support grants. Those requests were filed before Homeland Security formally terminated the grants, and the law requires agencies to process reimbursements within a statutory 30-day window. Instead of paying up or offering a lawful explanation for denying the requests, the administration froze the funds and then argued that it no longer had to meet the reimbursement deadline because the grants were now in "closeout."
If you are a lawyer, are interested in being an AUSA, and support President Trump and anti-crime agenda, DM me. We need good prosecutors. And DOJ is hiring across the country. Now is your chance to join the mission and do good for our country.- Chad Mizelle (@chad_mizelle) January 31, 2026
Driving the news: The DOJ alleged last summer that Boasberg raised concerns at a Judicial Conference session that the Trump administration would "disregard rulings" and trigger a "constitutional crisis." In his Dec. 19 order, Judge Jeffrey Sutton noted the department provided no evidence of Boasberg's comment, which was reported by conservative outlet The Federalist. Even if Boasberg made the statement, Sutton contended, it wouldn't constitute a conduct violation. The DOJ did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment.
* Maxwell refused to answer questions for Congress, but dangles possibility that she would talk if granted clemency. Surely it wouldn't be an issue that her testimony directly involves the person controlling the clemency decision! [ CBS News] * Research says AI has impacted junior lawyer judgment. The results confirm what we've been telling you! [ Legal Cheek] * Axiom closes its Arizona law firm. [ Reuters]
