Federal Judge Orders ICE Chief to Court Over Minnesota Detention Crisis
A federal judge in Minnesota has ordered the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement to appear in court this Friday, escalating tensions over the agency's handling of detention procedures amid President Donald Trump's intensified immigration enforcement operations in the state.Chief Judge Patrick J. Schiltz issued the extraordinary order Monday, demanding that ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons personally address the agency's alleged violations of court orders regarding bond hearings for detained immigrants. The directive comes as hundreds of federal agents continue conducting raids across Minneapolis and St. Paul."This Court has been extremely patient with respondents, even though respondents decided to send thousands of agents to Minnesota to detain aliens without making any provision for dealing with the hundreds of habeas petitions and other lawsuits that were sure to result," Schiltz wrote in his order.The judicial intervention follows mounting criticism of federal immigration enforcement tactics in Minnesota, particularly after two fatal shootings of U.S. citizens by immigration officers this month. The deaths of 37-year-old nurse Alex Pretti on Saturday and mother-of-three Renee Nicole Good earlier in January have sparked widespread protests and calls for accountability.Bystander videos of both incidents suggest neither victim posed an active threat when shot, according to reports. The controversial killings prompted Trump to replace Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino with "border czar" Tom Homan to oversee Minnesota operations.The court order specifically references the case of Juan TR, an Ecuadorian citizen who has been in the U.S. since approximately 1999. Despite a court-ordered bond hearing deadline of January 21, Juan remained in detention as of January 23, according to his attorneys.Judge Schiltz acknowledged the unusual nature of ordering a federal agency head to appear personally in court but emphasized that "the extent of ICE's violation of court orders is likewise extraordinary, and lesser measures have been tried and failed."The order will be canceled only if the petitioner is released from custody before Friday's hearing. Meanwhile, state officials and mayors of Minneapolis and St. Paul continue pursuing legal action to halt what they characterize as an unlawful immigration enforcement surge.Trump claimed Tuesday he had "great calls" with Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, though the administration has previously blamed Democratic leaders for the protests that have erupted across the state.Source: Al Jazeera
