Federal judge blocks Trump administration subpoenas to Minnesota officials
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U.S. District Judge Patrick Schiltz halted a Justice Department effort to subpoena Governor Tim Walz and other Minnesota leaders, ruling the subpoenas were intended to coerce state cooperation on immigration enforcement.
U.S. District Judge Patrick Schiltz issued a ruling on Monday that stops the Justice Department from compelling Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, Attorney General Keith Ellison, the mayors of Minneapolis and St. Paul, and county officials to produce records. The judge said the subpoenas were primarily aimed at forcing state officials to assist federal immigration enforcement and to punish them for not doing so. He found “extremely weak to nonexistent” links between the requested information and any criminal violation, noting that the materials largely related to constitutionally protected conduct and that Minnesota is not obligated to allocate resources to enforce federal immigration law. The Justice Department described the subpoenas as part of an investigation into alleged obstruction of law-enforcement actions and said it will continue to pursue the matter in compliance with the law. Walz called the decision “a victory for the rule of law and our democracy,” while other state officials said the subpoenas represented politically motivated retaliation. The ruling adds to a series of recent judicial setbacks for the Justice Department’s attempts to target critics of the Trump administration.