By Dan Rosenzweig-Ziff
WASHINGTON, Sept 30 (Reuters) – The US Justice Department filed a judicial misconduct complaint on Wednesday against judges in Minnesota who gave interviews to the New York Times about the immigration surge there, alleging it was unethical and partisan.
In September, judges in Minnesota told the Times that the Trump administration had a “disregard for court orders” and its actions threatened the rule of law. Two did so on the record.
The judicial misconduct complaint called the judges’ conduct “particularly egregious.” Misconduct complaints filed against other judges by the Justice Department under Trump have repeatedly been dismissed.
Attorney General Todd Blanche called the fact that the judges spoke to the media a “clear violation of their ethical duties” and criticized them for commenting on pending cases. He also asked the judges to recuse themselves from any case involving the Department of Homeland Security, alleging they had bias against the administration.
It is unusual for sitting judges to comment on the record about cases, particularly those in the news. In February, though, a judicial ethics panel released an opinion saying federal judges may advocate for greater security and defend colleagues against “illegitimate” attacks and criticism. They may also advocate for the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary, the ethics opinion said.
Rebecca Parks, a spokesperson for the judges, cited that ethics opinion in a statement arguing the judges committed no wrongdoing.
“As legal-ethics experts have confirmed, our judges were acting well within the ethical rules that apply to federal judges in speaking to the New York Times,” she said, adding that they were advocating for the rule of law and judicial independence.
The complaint was signed by the second- and third-ranking officials in the Department of Justice.
(Reporting by Dan Rosenzweig-Ziff; Editing by Doina Chiacu, Chizu Nomiyama and David Gaffen)
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