Judge castigates Trump administration for ‘bad faith’ in Abrego Garcia’s deportation case

A federal judge stated Tuesday that the Trump administration is ignoring court orders obstructing the legal process and acting in bad faith by refusing to provide information about the efforts they have taken if any to free a mistakenly deported man from an El Salvador prison and return him to the U S For weeks Defendants have sought refuge behind vague and unsubstantiated assertions of privilege using them as a shield to obstruct discovery and evade compliance with this Court s orders U S District Judge Paula Xinis wrote an the order Tuesday Defendants have known at least since last week that this Court requires specific legal and factual showings to sponsorship any claim of privilege Yet they have continued to rely on boilerplate assertions That ends now She gave the administration until p m Wednesday to provide those details The U S Supreme Court ordered the Trump administration nearly two weeks ago to facilitate Kilmar Abrego Garcia s return to the U S from a notorious Salvadoran prison rejecting the White House s claim that it couldn t retrieve him after mistakenly deporting him Trump administration functionaries have pushed back arguing that it is up to El Salvador though the president of El Salvador has also mentioned he lacks the power to return Abrego Garcia The administration has also argued that information about any strategies it has taken or could take to return Abrego Garcia is protected by attorney-client privilege laws state secret laws general ruling body privilege or other secrecy rules But Xinis revealed those proposes without any facts to back them up reflected a willful and bad faith refusal to comply with discovery obligations It s not the first time the Trump administration has faced a scathing order from a federal judge over its approach to deportation cases A three-judge panel on the th U S Circuit Court of Appeals scolded the administration last week saying its claim that it can t do anything to free Abrego Garcia should be shocking That ruling came one day after a federal judge in Washington D C determined probable cause to hold the Trump administration in criminal contempt of court for violating his orders to turn around planes carrying deportees to El Salvador in a different legal episode Democrats and legal scholars say President Donald Trump is provoking a constitutional situation in part by ignoring court rulings while the White House has stated it s the judges who are the complication