A federal judge on Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit brought by the Trump administration against judges who ruled to limit the government’s authority to expedite deportations.
U.S. District Judge Thomas Cullen, who was assigned the case because Maryland judges could not participate, ruled that the lawsuit was an improper way to challenge the various rulings.
The lawsuit stems from a ruling by Chief Judge George Russell. In May, he presented a standing order to judges on how to handle immigration cases where immigrants faced imminent deportation. His order enacted a temporary stay of these cases for two business days while a cases is under consideration.
The Trump Justice Department sued and asserted that Judge Russell had no authority to put what they called a broad injunction against the administration’s immigration policy that does not take each cases into consideration on its own merits.
Judge Cullen, a Trump appointee, found that the Trump administration would need to find a different method to challenge the rulings that don’t involve suing the judges.
“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,” he wrote. “Whatever the merits of its grievance with the judges of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, the Executive must find a proper way to raise those concerns,” he added.
Cullen did not address whether Judge Russell had the authority to issue the standing order.
This is one of many dustups that the Trump administration has caused when judges have ruled against the administration’s plans or actions.
Cullen also addressed this pattern in the footnotes of his ruling.
“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,” he noted.
