Judge James Boasberg indicated this week he may move forward with disciplinary proceedings for the Justice Department over a previous matter, a move flagged for its implications by a legal expert.
Boasberg was the judge who demanded that the Department of Homeland Security stop the deportation plans of Venezuelan migrants to CECOT prison. If they were in the air, the judge demanded they be turned around. If they landed, the judge said, the 140 men could not leave the plane and would have to be returned.
DHS ignored the ruling. At the time, Boasberg probed to determine who made the decisions in the matter and proceeded with his own questioning regarding who would be held in contempt for defying his ruling. In April, two judges above Boasberg, however, who were nominated by President Donald Trump, the other judge who voted in opposition was appointed by President Barack Obama.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit said that it sought to give “sufficient opportunity” for the judge to consider the government’s appeal. They claimed any contempt proceeding “should not be construed in any way as a ruling on the merits of that motion.”
“In the absence of an appealable order or any clear and indisputable right to relief that would support mandamus, there is no ground for an administrative stay,” wrote Judge Cornelia Pillard in her opposition.
In June, Boasberg ruled that Trump's use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport the men was illegal, and he gave the administration a week to return the individuals. Last week, Trump used 250 of the men from CECOT to bring 10 jailed Americans in Venezuela back to the United States. The group included one man who was convicted of killing three people with an ax.
That has remained on hold over the past several months; however, on Thursday, Boasberg said that he may initiate proceedings again.
In the months-long pause, Justice Department prosecutor Erez Reuveni, a 15-year veteran of the department, blew the whistle on conversations had at the time and instructions that came straight from the top to ignore the judge's orders.
According to Reuveni's affidavit, emails and text messages, Bove told staff in the DOJ that the Trump administration should consider telling the courts “f--- you” if they make any rulings on the deportations.
One set of text messages between Reuveni, his colleagues, and his supervisor, August Flentje, all referenced Bove's words.
The reason all the evidence has been sent to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee is that Bove has been nominated by Trump to serve as an appellate court judge. The Senate is expected to vote on the nomination next week.
Just Security co-editor-in-chief Ryan Goodman pointed to Boasberg's renewed interest in contempt proceedings, noting, "If you don't see the connection to Emil Bove, you're missing the extra import of this."
Boasberg wants the details on the flights, including the timeline. He'll be able to compare that to the whistleblower documents to flesh out what transpired.