Judge Halts Further Tree Removal at D.C. Golf Course Until Late October

A federal judge on Tuesday issued an order preventing the Trump administration from removing any more trees at East Potomac Golf Links in Washington, D.C., until Oct. 26. The order also requires the Department of the Interior and the National Park Service to give the court and the plaintiffs – the D.C. Preservation League and two local golfers – at least three business days’ notice before making any irreversible changes to the course’s permanent features.

Judge Reyes said the plaintiffs would likely suffer harm without the injunction and noted that the administration has repeatedly attempted to convert the public recreation area into a high-end golf facility.

"The administration has time and again tried to avoid the law in their mad rush toward converting a public recreation space to a high-end golf course and today's order will stop them from doing further irreparable harm to a precious public resource," said lawyers for the D.C. Preservation League and the two residents.

The order follows a four-hour hearing in which the judge criticized the Justice Department for late notification of a plan to cut an estimated 529 trees as part of a "tree management and cultural landscape rehabilitation project." The D.C. Preservation League reported that 529 trees were felled on a single Saturday, with additional trees slated for removal before rain halted work. A Justice Department attorney later said 430 trees had been cut and another 99 were identified for removal.

Reyes rebuked the Justice Department for failing to provide timely notice, stating, "You did not do your best. You did your absolute worst," and said the agency had "lost credibility." She ordered senior National Park Service officials to testify about the decision-making process behind the tree removals and scheduled a follow-up hearing for Oct. 19.