Judge unloads on ICE for defying court orders, then suddenly backs off one demand

Chief Judge Patrick Schiltz, the top federal judge in Minneapolis, sharply criticized Immigration and Customs Enforcement this week before unexpectedly backing off a plan to force the agency’s acting director to appear in court. The development was reported by Politico, which detailed how Schiltz issued a blistering order condemning ICE’s conduct while canceling a scheduled contempt hearing.

Although Schiltz withdrew his demand that acting ICE Director Todd Lyons testify in person, his four-page order did not soften its language. The judge accused the agency of repeatedly ignoring federal court mandates tied to the Trump administration’s immigration actions in Minnesota, calling the conduct an unprecedented pattern of defiance. A tension that mirrors local reactions to federal immigration enforcement, like the recent incident where an ICE agent reportedly made threatening remarks during a Minnesota operation.

In the order, Schiltz cited nearly 100 instances over the past month in which ICE allegedly violated court directives involving detainees held in the Twin Cities area under Operation Metro Surge. He emphasized that the issue should concern observers across the political spectrum and warned that federal agencies remain bound by the rule of law.

The judge made clear the criticism still stands

Schiltz, a George W. Bush appointee, wrote that ICE may have violated more court orders in January 2026 than some federal agencies have in their entire existence. He added that the agency does not operate outside the judicial system, stating plainly that “ICE is not a law unto itself.” Other federal judges in Minnesota have raised similar concerns, and city-state tensions are mounting in the region, with mayors publicly resisting federal immigration enforcement.

Shortly after Schiltz released his order, Judge John Tunheim approved an emergency request to block ICE from detaining thousands of refugees who are lawfully living in Minnesota while awaiting permanent residency decisions. Tunheim ordered the administration to release any individuals detained on that basis and to return those already transferred out of state.

Schiltz’s initial order stemmed from the case of Juan Tobay Robles, an Ecuadorian man whom the judge had directed ICE to release earlier this month. Officials failed to comply for several days, prompting Schiltz to schedule a contempt hearing that would have required Lyons to appear in court.

That hearing was canceled after Robles’ attorney confirmed on Wednesday that his client had been released from custody. While the release technically mooted the need for the contempt proceeding, attorney Graham Ojala-Barbour said he would welcome further efforts to seek accountability from the agency.

Additional litigation is continuing in federal court. Another judge in Minneapolis is reviewing a lawsuit from state and city governments seeking to halt the immigration surge, while a newly filed class-action suit alleges constitutional violations tied to detainees held at a temporary detention facility inside a federal building.