Tag

#contempt of court

Willful disobedience of a court order or obstruction of court proceedings. When the executive branch defies judicial orders, it creates a constitutional crisis undermining the separation of powers and the rule of law.

4 incidents

Grade 4 of 5: Critical Rights and Rule-of-Law Concern

Judge Holds DHS in Contempt Twice for Deporting Protected Young Asylum Seekers, Including One Teen Deported to El Salvador Twice

A Trump-appointed federal judge twice held DHS in contempt in 2026 for deporting young asylum seekers protected by a court settlement: at least 107 removals found in July, then the second deportation to El Salvador of the same 19-year-old in September, after he had already been returned once. DHS blamed 'communication errors.'

Grade 4 of 5: Critical Rights and Rule-of-Law Concern

Pattern of Wrongful Deportations: US Citizens and Protected Individuals Removed Despite Court Orders

Multiple US citizens and legally protected individuals have been wrongfully deported, often in direct defiance of federal court orders. The pattern includes deportation of a man with explicit judicial protection, another removed the day after a court barred his removal, and a US citizenship claimant deported despite a restraining order.

Grade 4 of 5: Critical Rights and Rule-of-Law Concern

Trump Pardons Sheriff Joe Arpaio for Defying a Court Order Against Racial Profiling (2017)

A federal judge found Arpaio guilty of deliberately defying a court order meant to stop his deputies from detaining Latino drivers on immigration suspicion alone. Trump pardoned him before he could be sentenced, removing the courts' criminal sanction for an official's defiance of an order protecting constitutional rights.