Appeals court pauses Judge Boasberg’s contempt probe against Trump administration

A federal appeals court late Friday temporarily halted U.S. District Judge James Boasberg’s contempt investigation against the Trump administration after he accused officials of failing to comply with his order regarding deportation flights to El Salvador last month.

A divided U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit emphasized that its order “should not be construed in any way as a ruling on the merits” of Boasberg’s decision. The decision is instead intended to provide “sufficient opportunity” for the court to consider the appeal by the Trump administration, the decision noted.

The three-judge appellate panel split 2-1 on the decision, with two Trump appointees ruling to hold up the contempt proceeding, and the Obama appointee dissenting.

Boasberg on Wednesday found probable cause for contempt proceedings against the Trump administration.

In a scathing ruling, he raked officials’ “willful disregard” for his ruling by apparently taking no action to turn around the March 15 deportation flights, as he had ordered.

He gave Trump officials until April 23 to bring the men back from El Salvador to allow them to make their case in an American court against deportation. Otherwise, he vowed to launch contempt proceedings.

The appeals court ruling was issued shortly after Boasberg held a separate emergency hearing requested by the American Civil Liberties Union to block an expected new wave of deportations to El Salvador, even though the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that deportees have a right to due process in America before they can be shipped out.

Deputy Assistant Attorney General Drew Ensign insisted at the hearing that no flights were planned through Saturday. But then he contradicted himself, saying Friday: “I have also been told to say that they reserve the right to remove people tomorrow.”

While Boasberg said he was sympathetic to the ACLU’s argument, he declined to make a ruling, noting that the situation was now up to the Supreme Court.

“At this point, I just don’t think I have the power to do anything about it,” Boasberg said.

The ACLU filed emergency hearing requests with the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court for an immediate intervention.