Two federal judges in Minnesota are looking for answers from federal prosecutors.
U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Bryan wants to know why acting U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen should not be held in civil or criminal contempt.
According to the judge, Rosen and two fellow federal prosecutors have failed to comply to court orders by not returning property to the petitioners in more than twenty cases.
This comes as Chief U.S. District Judge Patrick Schiltz warned Rosen and ICE officials that they must comply with court orders or risk criminal contempt charges.
Schiltz is reacting to an email sent by Rosen accusing the judge of overstating the extent of ICE's non-compliance with court orders in relation to Operation Metro Surge.
In January, Schiltz made the statement that “ICE is not a law unto itself," referring to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Schiltz wasn't referring to the tactics of immigration officers, who have killed two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis, burst into homes with battering rams, smashed windows and pulled people from cars, and tossed tear gas at irate protesters.
Rather, after surveying other judges in his court, Schiltz was talking about the government's failure to comply with nearly 100 court orders since Jan. 1 in 74 cases in which people arrested during Operation Metro Surge have sued seeking release or other relief. Even that number, he said, is "almost certainly substantially understated."
“This list should give pause to anyone — no matter his or her political beliefs — who cares about the rule of law. ... ICE has every right to challenge the orders of this Court, but, like any litigant, ICE must follow those orders unless and until they are overturned or vacated,” Schiltz wrote.