Federal Judge Holds DHS in Contempt Over Detainee’s Transfer

A federal judge in Minnesota has decided to hold officials from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in civil contempt due to their breach of a court order regarding the transfer of Fernando Gutierrez Torres, a Mexican detainee.

U.S. District Judge Eric Tostrud, who was appointed by President Trump in 2018, found that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) moved Torres to Texas without notifying his attorney, despite a clear order prohibiting his transfer from Minnesota.

The judge approved Torres’ habeas petition and instructed ICE to release him “as soon as possible, but no later than 48 hours” after the ruling, as indicated in court documents.

Complications arose when Texas declared a state of emergency due to a winter storm, resulting in the cancellation of Torres’ ICE flight. The earliest he could be rescheduled back to Minnesota would be on January 27, which would violate the court’s 48-hour release directive.

In an effort to comply with the deadline, authorities opted to release Torres immediately in El Paso, Texas, rather than wait for him to fly back to Minnesota.

However, upon his release, court documents revealed that Torres’ belongings were confiscated.

Judge Tostrud commented that the rush to meet the deadline did not exonerate the agency because ICE should not have violated the initial court order that prohibited the transfer in the first place. The government was also ordered to cover the approximately $570 for the return flight that had initially been paid by his attorney.

The government argued that the transfer decision was not made with “deliberate disregard” for the court’s order, but acknowledged it was still a violation.

There was an admission from government attorneys that they should have consulted with Torres’ attorney before deciding on his release in Texas, a point to which they seem to concede. This non-compliance did not align with the court’s expectations.

The judge also expressed a willingness for the administration to file a motion for an evidentiary hearing by March 1, when the ruling will take effect.

Additionally, it allows for the identification of individuals or entities that may subsequently violate the court order.

The reasons behind Torres’ initial arrest remain unclear, with the government only stating it was due to “suspected immigration violations.”