By Jim Mishler | Friday, 12 December 2025 04:17 PM EST
The Trump administration has asked a federal appeals court to block U.S. District Judge James Boasberg from holding contempt hearings next week and to remove him from the deportation case.
This request escalates a dispute between the administration and Boasberg that began in March after President Donald Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act to expedite the deportation of alleged Venezuelan gang members.
In a recent filing, the Department of Justice argued that Judge Boasberg has demonstrated bias and should no longer oversee the matter. The DOJ claimed that Boasberg has created “a strong appearance that the district judge is engaged in a pattern of retaliation and harassment, and has developed too strong a bias to preside over this matter impartially.”
Boasberg recently ordered testimony from former Justice Department employee Erez Reuveni, who has made a whistleblower disclosure related to deportation flights that transported more than 100 Venezuelan men to El Salvador. The testimony is expected to inform Boasberg’s consideration of whether to refer Trump administration officials for criminal contempt charges.
Boasberg previously found that his March order directing deportation flights to turn around may have been violated. Another Justice Department attorney, Drew Ensign, has been ordered to testify on Tuesday.
The Justice Department stated: “This long-running saga never should have begun; should not have continued at all after this Court’s last intervention; and certainly should not be allowed to escalate into the unseemly and unnecessary interbranch conflict that it now imminently portends.”
Reuveni attended meetings in mid-March as the administration prepared to invoke the Alien Enemies Act, including a meeting in which former senior Justice Department official Emil Bove is alleged to have discussed resisting court action. Documents previously submitted by Reuveni describe internal emails sent during efforts by the American Civil Liberties Union to block the deportation flights.
In a prior filing, the Justice Department stated that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem directed the flights to continue. Ensign submitted a sworn declaration stating that he relayed Boasberg’s order to DHS and senior Justice Department staff.
Boasberg’s handling of the case has drawn criticism from Republicans, and Trump has publicly called for the judge’s impeachment. Boasberg has repeatedly been at the center of legal disputes between the federal judiciary and the Trump administration over immigration enforcement.
Earlier this year, he found “probable cause” to pursue contempt charges against administration officials for allegedly ignoring his March 15 order to halt deportation flights under the Alien Enemies Act—a wartime statute used to remove Venezuelan nationals. The administration disputes this claim.
Boasberg’s efforts to scrutinize executive branch actions have faced pushback. In August, a federal appeals court blocked his attempt to pursue criminal contempt proceedings, ruling that his approach was overly broad and raised separation of powers concerns. More recently, Boasberg reopened the contempt inquiry to examine whether officials authorized deportation flights to proceed despite his directive, deepening an ongoing clash between the judiciary and the Trump administration over immigration authority.
Jim Mishler is a seasoned reporter, anchor and news director with decades of experience covering crime, politics and environmental issues.
