{"id":2520672,"date":"2025-12-12T16:17:01","date_gmt":"2025-12-12T21:17:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/doj-asks-appeals-court-to-halt-boasbergs-contempt-hearing-next-week\/"},"modified":"2025-12-12T16:19:16","modified_gmt":"2025-12-12T21:19:16","slug":"doj-asks-appeals-court-to-halt-boasbergs-contempt-hearing-next-week","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/doj-asks-appeals-court-to-halt-boasbergs-contempt-hearing-next-week\/","title":{"rendered":"DOJ asks appeals court to halt Boasberg&#8217;s contempt hearing next week"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fdoj-asks-appeals-court-to-halt-boasbergs-contempt-hearing-next-week%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2520672&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), representing the Trump governance, has requested a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/federal-court-is-fast-tracking-sidney-powells-request-for-a-forensic-exam-of-dominion-voting-machines\/\" title=\"Federal Court Is Fast-Tracking Sidney Powell\u2019s Request For A Forensic Exam Of Dominion Voting Machines\">federal appeals court<\/a> to halt the contempt hearings scheduled next week by Chief U.S.District Judge James Boasberg and to remove him from overseeing the case. This <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/scotus-punts-to-leftist-court-on-biden-abortion-expansion\/\" title=\"SCOTUS Punts To Leftist Court On Biden Abortion Expansion\">legal battle centers<\/a> on deportations conducted under the Alien Enemies Act, specifically involving the removal of Venezuelan nationals alleged to be gang members.The DOJ accuses Boasberg of engaging in retaliatory and unconstitutional judicial activism, threatening attorney-client privilege, and violating separation-of-powers principles. Boasberg had ordered the return of deportation flights that were en route to el Salvador, but the men were ultimately transferred and detained there. The judge is pursuing testimony from DOJ lawyers to determine whether officials defied his orders,which could lead to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/republicans-should-treat-anthony-fauci-like-democrats-treat-republicans\/\" title=\"Republicans Should Treat Anthony Fauci Like Democrats Treat Republicans\">criminal contempt referrals<\/a>. The administration&#8217;s move escalates a months-long conflict, with Boasberg&#8217;s actions drawing criticism and calls for his impeachment from some Republican lawmakers.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">DOJ asks appeals court to halt Boasberg&rsquo;s contempt hearing next week<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2405822\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>The <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/trump-administration\/\">Trump administration<\/a> on Friday asked a federal appeals court to immediately block Chief U.S. District Judge <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3353353\/james-boasberg-dc-judge-impeachment-trump-immigration\/\">James Boasberg<\/a>&rsquo;s planned contempt hearings and remove him from overseeing the case, escalating a monthslong clash over deportations carried out under the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3409872\/first-federal-judge-approves-trump-alien-enemies-act\/\">Alien Enemies Act<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>In a <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/storage.courtlistener.com\/recap\/gov.uscourts.dcd.278436\/gov.uscourts.dcd.278436.206.0.pdf\">petition filed<\/a> with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/department-of-justice\/\">Justice Department<\/a> urged judges to halt testimony scheduled to begin next week, arguing Boasberg has crossed constitutional lines and can no longer preside over the dispute impartially.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3915716\/e-jean-carroll-dna-refusal-tainted-verdict-against-trump-allies-tell-supreme-court\/\">E. Jean Carroll&#8217;s DNA refusal tainted verdict against Trump, allies tell Supreme Court<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3916020\/abrego-garcia-vows-fight-against-trump-administration\/\">Abrego Garcia vows to &#8216;fight&#8217; against Trump administration as judge prohibits further detention<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3915248\/tyler-robinson-lawyers-court-camera-charlie-kirk\/\">Tyler Robinson&#8217;s lawyers protest camera feed showing Charlie Kirk assassin suspect in shackles<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, stands for a portrait at E. Barrett Prettyman Federal Courthouse in Washington on March 16, 2023. (Carolyn Van Houten\/The Washington Post via AP, File)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Attorney General <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/pam-bondi\/\">Pam Bondi<\/a> said the filing was necessary to stop what she described as &ldquo;lawless judicial activism,&rdquo; accusing Boasberg of threatening attorney-client privilege and violating separation-of-powers principles in retaliation for the administration&rsquo;s immigration enforcement. Bondi said the dispute stems from the administration&rsquo;s decision to remove Venezuelan nationals alleged to be members of the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/venezuela\/\">Tren de Aragua<\/a> gang.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/washington-secrets\/3909504\/trump-given-week-of-wins-and-fake-scandal-white-house-report-card\/\">TRUMP GIVEN WEEK OF WINS AND FAKE SCANDAL: WHITE HOUSE REPORT CARD<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This radical, retaliatory, unconstitutional campaign against the Trump Administration will not stand,&rdquo; Bondi said.<\/p>\n<p>In Friday&rsquo;s filing, the DOJ accused Boasberg, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, of retaliatory conduct, saying his pursuit of testimony from government lawyers creates &ldquo;a strong appearance that the district judge is engaged in a pattern of retaliation and harassment.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This long-running saga never should have begun; should not have continued at all after this Court&rsquo;s last intervention; and certainly should not be allowed to escalate into the unseemly and unnecessary interbranch conflict that it now imminently portends,&rdquo; the department wrote.<\/p>\n<p>The filing marks a sharp escalation in the administration&rsquo;s fight with Boasberg, who has been pursuing a fact-finding inquiry into whether Trump officials defied his emergency March order directing deportation flights to turn around while en route to El Salvador.<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >contempt dispute traces back<\/a> to March 15, when Trump invoked the rarely used Alien Enemies Act to rapidly deport nearly 140 Venezuelan men identified by DHS as gang members. Boasberg ordered the planes turned around, but the men were transferred to Salvadoran custody and later imprisoned at the country&rsquo;s Terrorism Confinement Center.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/house\/3895131\/democrats-should-temper-expectations-2026-blue-wave\/\">DEMOCRATS NEED TO TEMPER THEIR EXPECTATIONS OF A 2026 BLUE WAVE<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Boasberg has scheduled testimony from former DOJ attorney Erez Reuveni on Monday and current DOJ lawyer Drew Ensign on Tuesday as he weighs whether to refer administration officials for criminal contempt. In a <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/storage.courtlistener.com\/recap\/gov.uscourts.dcd.278436\/gov.uscourts.dcd.278436.208.0.pdf\">separate order<\/a> by Boasberg issued just after the administration&rsquo;s appeal, he denied the government&rsquo;s motion that requested him to halt his Monday hearing, adding that he sees no reason to &ldquo;delay the entire hearing while waiting for further, unspecified appellate guidance, as the Government also demands.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Reuveni, the former DOJ employee <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3467900\/doj-torches-disgruntled-leaker-targeting-emil-bove\/\">whose &ldquo;whistleblower&rdquo; status has been disputed by Bondi<\/a>, alleges senior officials decided in advance to ignore whatever the court ordered. According to his account of the events, former senior DOJ official <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3913908\/fix-the-court-emil-bove-complaint-trump-rally\/\">Emil Bove<\/a> suggested during a March 14 meeting that the department might have to tell the courts &ldquo;f*** you&rdquo; and proceed with removals regardless. Bove has denied the allegation, calling it false and distorted.<\/p>\n<p>Reuveni&rsquo;s materials include emails sent the night of March 15 as the American Civil Liberties Union sought emergency relief to block the flights. He has also claimed Ensign knew deportation planes were already in the air when representations were made to the court.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;He knows they are being removed,&rdquo; Reuveni said of Ensign, specifying that he knew &ldquo;about the flights.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Ensign, the DOJ&rsquo;s key witness, wrote in a sworn declaration that he relayed Boasberg&rsquo;s order to relevant parties, including the Department of Homeland Security, but did not address whether he was aware flights were pending. The DOJ has said Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem ultimately directed the flights to continue.<\/p>\n<p>In April, <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3369568\/judge-james-boasberg-trump-officials-bad-faith-weighs-contempt-venezuelan-deportations\/\">Boasberg&rsquo;s finding<\/a> that the government showed &ldquo;probable cause&rdquo; for contempt was vacated by a three-judge appeals panel on jurisdictional grounds, a decision the full D.C. Circuit declined to revisit in November. However, the appeals court emphasized that its decision should not be read as excusing defiance of court orders.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3912591\/judge-boasberg-seeks-testimony-from-doj-whistleblower-in-criminal-contempt-inquiry\/\">JUDGE JAMES BOASBERG SEEKS TESTIMONY FROM DOJ &lsquo;WHISTLEBLOWER&rsquo; IN CRIMINAL CONTEMPT INQUIRY<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We fully appreciate the seriousness of the governmental conduct the district court observed,&rdquo; <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/media.cadc.uscourts.gov\/orders\/docs\/2025\/11\/25-5124LDEN2.FINAL.pdf\">the appeals court wrote<\/a>, stressing that respect for judicial orders and the judiciary&rsquo;s contempt power &ldquo;are essential to the rule of law,&rdquo; and that the district court remains free to continue its fact-finding hearings.<\/p>\n<p>Boasberg has said any <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/boasberg-seeks-testimony-from-doj-whistleblower-in-criminal-contempt-inquiry\/\" title=\"... seeks ... from ... whistleblower in ... inquiry\">final contempt referral remains<\/a> possible and that defiance of a court order may be punishable even if the underlying order is later invalidated. His actions have made him a target of Republicans, with Trump calling for his impeachment and <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/3889533\/senators-ask-dc-circuit-suspend-james-boasberg-pending-impeachment-vote\/\">GOP lawmakers introducing impeachment articles<\/a> and calling for his temporary suspension.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>DOJ urges appeals court to stop Boasberg&#8217;s contempt hearing<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2633,"featured_media":2520673,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/AP25338681606804.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[32324,52306,47515,7076,33118],"class_list":["post-2520672","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-appeals-court","tag-boasberg","tag-contempt-hearing","tag-doj","tag-legal-proceedings"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/AP25338681606804.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2520672","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2633"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2520672"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2520672\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2520680,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2520672\/revisions\/2520680"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2520673"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2520672"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2520672"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2520672"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}