A federal judge has quashed subpoenas targeting Minnesota Gov.
A Utah judge denied an effort by Tyler Robinson’s lawyers to have his former roommate and lover be subpoenaed to testify at next month’s preliminary hearing ahead of Robinson’s trial for allegedly killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Judge Tony Graf denied two motions by Robinson’s lawyers in a Utah County court Monday, including one to have […]
Federal judge rules subpoenas linked to Trump’s immigration operation were ‘issued for unlawful reasons’US politics live – latest updatesA federal judge agreed to quash the US federal government’s subpoenas of leaders in Minnesota issued during the Trump administration’s controversial immigration crackdown on the state earlier this year.The US Department of Justice issued subpoenas to the Minnesota governor, Tim Walz; the attorney general, Keith Ellison; the Minneapolis mayor, Jacob Frey; and other local officials in the Twin Cities in January. Continue reading...
Minnesota's top federal judge on Monday quashed several Trump administration subpoenas for immigration-related records from Gov. Tim Walz (D) and a dozen other state and local officials.Why it matters: The grand jury subpoenas — issued when Operation Metro Surge was at its height — were clearly meant to "coerce Minnesota officials into assisting the federal government with enforcing civil immigration laws," U.S. District Court Chief Judge Patrick Schiltz concluded.What they're saying: Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey — one of the subpoena targets — praised the ruling in a statement, calling the attempted probe an "effort to weaponize [U.S. Department of Justice] power against elected leaders who disagree with the federal administration.""The U.S. Justice Department is pursuing criminal investigations into the President's political opponents," added Walz in an X post. "This case was just one example of that."Representatives for the Justice Department did not immediately respond to Axios' Monday afternoon request for comment.The big picture: The Jan. 20 subpoenas also targeted Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her and Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarity.County commissioners in both Ramsey and Hennepin counties also challenged the subpoenas.Catch up quick: Four days after the subpoenas arrived, then-AG Pam Bondi sent Walz a letter demanding Minnesota repeal its "sanctuary policies" and hand over voter registration, food stamps and Medicaid records."You and your office must restore the rule of law," Bondi's letter read.Between the lines: Grand juries have broad investigative powers, and it's "extremely rare" for judges to intervene, Ellison said.But Schiltz — a George W. Bush appointee — found "overwhelming" evidence the subpoenas were issued "in order to harass political opponents … a blatantly unlawful and unethical use of the grand jury process."Editor's note: This is a breaking news story and may be updated.
A federal judge in Minnesota has tossed out multiple Department of Justice (DOJ) grand jury subpoenas aimed at Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D), Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D) and other officials in the state. U.S. District Judge Patrick Schiltz wrote there was “no doubt” the DOJ issued the subpoenas to “harass” political opponents of President…
A federal judge has upended Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche's campaign to "retaliate" against Minnesota Democrats who refused to help enforce President Donald Trump's immigration agenda.Chief Judge Patrick J. Schiltz of the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota quashed all six grand-jury subpoenas Monday targeting Gov. Tim Walz, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, and St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her — all Democrats — as well as county officials in Ramsey and Hennepin counties.The subpoenas, served on Jan. 20, sought sweeping records related to immigration enforcement dating back to Jan. 1, 2025 — the opening salvo of a Justice Department investigation into whether Minnesota officials had obstructed federal immigration agents during "Operation Metro Surge."The judge shot down the DOJ's arguments in his Monday order."The evidence that the challenged subpoenas were issued for unlawful reasons is overwhelming," he wrote. "The Department has struggled — without success — to identify a single plausible investigatory justification for the subpoenas."The Justice Department couldn't point to an instance of a Minnesota official actually obstructing a law enforcement officer. It withdrew one of its five stated justifications after admitting it had no verifiable source.On Jan. 13, Trump posted on Truth Social, threatening "RETRIBUTION" against Minnesota's political leaders. Three days later, the subpoenas leaked to multiple outlets — with at least one citing "U.S. officials" as its source.On Jan. 14, he posted on X accusing Walz and Frey of "encouraging violence against law enforcement" and vowing to stop their "terrorism by whatever means necessary."Four months later, Blanche went on Fox News and named Walz again — this time in the context of a fraud investigation, saying the governor had "done nothing but sue us."Schiltz found the subpoenas "were not issued to investigate, but to harass, coerce, and retaliate.""The dominant purpose of the challenged subpoenas," he wrote, "is to coerce Minnesota officials into assisting the federal government with enforcing civil immigration law and to harass and retaliate against them for failing to do so."
CNN anchor Brianna Keilar was stunned after a federal judge scolded the Trump administration in a scorching new ruling on Monday.Chief Judge Patrick J. Schiltz of the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota blocked the Justice Department's efforts to subpoena Minnesota Democratic Gov. Tim Walz and other Democratic officials in an immigration enforcement probe, CNN reported. Walz, who has publicly criticized President Donald Trump, was targeted by the DOJ along with Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, and St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her. County officials in Ramsey and Hennepin counties were also issued subpoenas."That is quite a lashing," Keilar said, responding to the judge's ruling.CNN correspondent Katelyn Polantz described the opinion — and what made it stand out."I don't know if I've seen an opinion take on the Justice Department in this way before from a federal judge saying just explicitly that they believe that the Justice Department was using its authority for political means in exactly the wrong, unlawful way," Polantz said.The subpoenas from former Attorney General Pam Bondi came following weeks of unrest and protest in Minnesota after two people — Renee Good and Alex Pretti — were killed amid aggressive ICE raids in Minneapolis. In the letters, Bondi told local officials that they needed to support ICE, Polantz said."It was a retribution and a reckoning day that was coming for people in Minnesota that didn't support the federal government," Polantz explained. "What the Justice Department said at that time was that people like Walz, Frey, they were going to be investigated for impeding federal law enforcement. But this federal judge, Patrick Schiltz, in Minnesota, he finds that that is totally not what the Justice Department was doing." "He says that the way they brought forth this criminal investigation into Walz's office, the mayor's offices, the attorney general's office in Minnesota," she added. "It was blatantly unlawful and unethical use of the grand jury process. He says that there was no doubt that these were grand jury subpoenas for documents that were meant to harass and coerce these local officials, and that there was no plausible investigative justification. The unlawful reasons here were overwhelming, quite a shock to see it on paper from a judge in this federal case saying, 'these guys, these grand jury subpoenas, they're not going to survive.'"
