Latest news with #2ndCircuitCourtofAppeals
Politico
18-07-2025
- Politics
- Politico
What could we learn from Epstein grand jury docs? And other key questions, answered.
Many legal experts, however, said they thought the requests in New York would be handled by what's known as the 'Part 1' judge on duty in the district, which rotates on a schedule, and it's unclear whether the requests could get transferred to such a judge. Until Saturday, that is U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas, a Biden appointee, and next week it's scheduled to be U.S. District Judge Ronnie Abrams, an Obama appointee. Will a judge actually unseal the grand jury docs? The fact that the Epstein investigation was based in New York may actually affect the outcome of Trump and Bondi's unsealing push because of the disparate ways courts handle grand jury material. Records of grand jury investigations are some of the most closely held secrets in government and rarely yield to public interest except in extraordinary circumstances. Courts say that secrecy is necessary to protect the integrity of criminal investigations, witnesses who may provide sensitive testimony, victims who may be identified and the grand jurors themselves. There are a handful of narrow exceptions written into federal rules allowing for their release. Courts have split, however, over whether judges have their own discretionary power to release grand jury material for reasons that aren't on the list — such as the historical significance of the secret records. For example, the federal appeals court in Washington, D.C. has concluded that judges do not have discretion to release material outside the written rules. But in New York federal courts, where the Epstein and Maxwell grand jury investigations and prosecutions took place, the guiding precedent is looser. Instead, judges are required to balance a slew of factors to determine whether grand jury material can be released: the historical significance of the records at issue, the amount of time that has elapsed since the investigation, whether the DOJ supports or opposes release, the specificity of the requested unsealing, whether any witnesses or victims are still alive and whether any of the material has previously been made public. Those factors, applied to the Epstein saga, appear muddled at best. Trump has called for 'pertinent' grand jury records to come out. And one of the arguments DOJ previously made against disclosures was that it could damage the purported victims of Epstein's alleged sex trafficking conspiracy, many of whom are still alive. In the guiding case that New York federal courts rely on, the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals agreed that a lower-court judge — U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin, a Clinton appointee — had properly denied a researcher's bid to access records of a McCarthy-era grand jury proceeding. Though the court agreed that district judges have broad discretion to order such releases, the judges pointed to Scheindlin's concern that 'the current disclosure would involve some witnesses who are still alive.' The panel emphasized that 'in some situations historical or public interest alone could justify the release of grand jury information,' but it cited the examples of grand jury investigations related to John Wilkes Booth or Aaron Burr, noting that the long-term public interest in those cases could 'overwhelm' the need for secrecy. What has DOJ previously said about the risks of releasing the Epstein files? In 2017, the celebrity and entertainment news website Radar Online sued for the FBI's files on its investigation into Epstein up to that point. The outlet won access to some information, but most was withheld on various grounds, primarily the then-ongoing criminal case against Maxwell.
24-06-2025
- Politics
Trump administration ordered to return wrongly deported man from El Salvador
A federal appeals court has ordered the Trump administration to facilitate the return of another man who was wrongly deported to El Salvador in violation of a court order. The order to facilitate the return of Jordin Alexander Melgar-Salmeron, a 31-year-old Salvadoran who was deported last month minutes after a federal appeals court barred his removal, is the fourth known case of a migrant ordered to be returned to the U.S. after being wrongly removed. Two of the migrants, including Kilmar Abrego Garcia and a Guatemalan man identified in court papers as O.C.G. who was wrongly deported to Mexico, have been returned to the U.S. On Tuesday, the three-judge panel of the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals found that Melgar-Salmeron's deportation was "improper" because it "contradicted" the government's assurances to the court that it would not remove him. The court ordered the administration to facilitate the return of Melgar-Salmeron "as soon as possible" to "ensure that his case is handled as it would have been had he not been improperly sent to El Salvador." The Trump administration was also ordered to file a declaration from an individual with personal knowledge about the 31-year-old's current physical location and what steps the government will take to facilitate Melgar-Salmeron's return to the U.S. According to court records, Melgar-Salmeron had been in immigration detention in the U.S. for two years following a prison sentence for possessing an "unregistered sawed-off shotgun." In April, Immigration and Customs Enforcement scheduled his removal for May 9. But on May 7, minutes after a federal appeals court barred Melgar-Salmeron's deportation, he was removed to El Salvador.
Yahoo
24-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Another man who was deported in violation of court order must be returned to US, court rules
The Trump administration must try to bring back to the U.S. another man who was deported to El Salvador in violation of a court order, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday. It's the fourth time since March that federal courts have ordered the administration to return immigrants who were deemed illegally or improperly deported. Officials must begin seeking the return of Jordin Melgar-Salmeron, who was sent to his native country on May 7, 'as soon as possible,' a three-judge panel of the New York-based 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals ruled. Justice Department officials acknowledged last month that Melgar-Salmeron's deportation violated an earlier directive from the 2nd Circuit. A department lawyer blamed a 'confluence of administrative errors,' including missed emails and an inaccurate roster of passengers on the May 7 deportation flight. But the Department of Homeland Security contradicted that assessment in a public statement, saying there was 'no error' and accusing Melgar-Salmeron of belonging to the violent MS-13 gang. Melgar-Salmeron's situation resembles the cases of three other men whose hurried deportations prompted strong pushback from courts. All allegedly entered the U.S. without authorization but had protections from being immediately deported. Two of the men, Kilmar Abrego Garcia and Daniel Lozano Camargo, were sent to El Salvador on March 15. Abrego Garcia's deportation violated a binding 2019 order from an immigration judge, who had barred the government from sending him to El Salvador because he faced a risk of violence there. Lozano Camargo's deportation violated a binding court settlement related to certain undocumented immigrants who arrived in the U.S. as minors. And another man, identified in court papers only as O.C.G., was ordered returned from overseas by a federal judge in Massachusetts after administration officials acknowledged that they had no evidence he was offered a 'credible fear' assessment before he was deported to Mexico. Authorities are supposed to conduct such assessments to ensure they are complying with legal requirements not to deport people to countries where they have a credible fear of torture or persecution. The administration arranged for the return of O.C.G. earlier this month, and brought back Abrego to face criminal immigrant smuggling charges. A recent update from the Department of Homeland Security indicated that discussions with El Salvador related to Lozano Camargo's return are continuing. Melgar-Salmeron, who spent years living in Virginia, had been in immigration detention since 2022 until his deportation last month. That detention followed a prison sentence for possessing an unregistered shotgun, according to court records. Though he had originally also been charged with entering the country illegally, he was allowed to plead guilty in 2021 to only the firearms charge. After his prison sentence ended, Melgar-Salmeron was detained by immigration authorities while deportation proceedings against him were ongoing. In January 2024, the Biden administration put Melgar-Salmeron's deportation case on hold amid broader litigation over immigration policy. In April, the Trump administration moved to lift that hold. The Justice Department asked the appeals court to 'expedite' Melgar-Salmeron's case and indicated that it wanted to deport him by May 9 'at the latest' — but assured the court no deportation would take place before May 8. On the morning of May 7, a three-judge panel of the 2nd Circuit ordered the government to keep Melgar-Salmeron in the United States while he pursued claims about fear of torture in his home country. But, about 30 minutes later, Melgar-Salmeron was on a deportation flight. The three judges who issued the unanimous order Tuesday for Melgar-Salmeron's return are Trump appointee Richard Sullivan and Biden appointees Alison Nathan and Maria Araujo Kahn. They cited the Supreme Court's ruling in Abrego Garcia's case, which required the administration to 'ensure that his case is handled as it would have been had he not been improperly sent to El Salvador.' The judges also ordered the administration to provide an update next week on Melgar-Salmeron's location and the steps that officials will take to facilitate his return.
Politico
24-06-2025
- Politics
- Politico
Another man who was deported in violation of court order must be returned to US, court rules
The Trump administration must try to bring back to the U.S. another man who was deported to El Salvador in violation of a court order, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday. It's the fourth time since March that federal courts have ordered the administration to return immigrants who were deemed illegally or improperly deported. Officials must begin seeking the return of Jordin Melgar-Salmeron, who was sent to his native country on May 7, 'as soon as possible,' a three-judge panel of the New York-based 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals ruled. Justice Department officials acknowledged last month that Melgar-Salmeron's deportation violated an earlier directive from the 2nd Circuit. A department lawyer blamed a 'confluence of administrative errors,' including missed emails and an inaccurate roster of passengers on the May 7 deportation flight. But the Department of Homeland Security contradicted that assessment in a public statement, saying there was 'no error' and accusing Melgar-Salmeron of belonging to the violent MS-13 gang. Melgar-Salmeron's situation resembles the cases of three other men whose hurried deportations prompted strong pushback from courts. All allegedly entered the U.S. without authorization but had protections from being immediately deported. Two of the men, Kilmar Abrego Garcia and Daniel Lozano Camargo, were sent to El Salvador on March 15. Abrego Garcia's deportation violated a binding 2019 order from an immigration judge, who had barred the government from sending him to El Salvador because he faced a risk of violence there. Lozano Camargo's deportation violated a binding court settlement related to certain undocumented immigrants who arrived in the U.S. as minors. And another man, identified in court papers only as O.C.G., was ordered returned from overseas by a federal judge in Massachusetts after administration officials acknowledged that they had no evidence he was offered a 'credible fear' assessment before he was deported to Mexico. Authorities are supposed to conduct such assessments to ensure they are complying with legal requirements not to deport people to countries where they have a credible fear of torture or persecution. The administration arranged for the return of O.C.G. earlier this month, and brought back Abrego to face criminal immigrant smuggling charges. A recent update from the Department of Homeland Security indicated that discussions with El Salvador related to Lozano Camargo's return are continuing. Melgar-Salmeron, who spent years living in Virginia, had been in immigration detention since 2022 until his deportation last month. That detention followed a prison sentence for possessing an unregistered shotgun, according to court records. Though he had originally also been charged with entering the country illegally, he was allowed to plead guilty in 2021 to only the firearms charge. After his prison sentence ended, Melgar-Salmeron was detained by immigration authorities while deportation proceedings against him were ongoing. In January 2024, the Biden administration put Melgar-Salmeron's deportation case on hold amid broader litigation over immigration policy. In April, the Trump administration moved to lift that hold. The Justice Department asked the appeals court to 'expedite' Melgar-Salmeron's case and indicated that it wanted to deport him by May 9 'at the latest' — but assured the court no deportation would take place before May 8. On the morning of May 7, a three-judge panel of the 2nd Circuit ordered the government to keep Melgar-Salmeron in the United States while he pursued claims about fear of torture in his home country. But, about 30 minutes later, Melgar-Salmeron was on a deportation flight. The three judges who issued the unanimous order Tuesday for Melgar-Salmeron's return are Trump appointee Richard Sullivan and Biden appointees Alison Nathan and Maria Araujo Kahn. They cited the Supreme Court's ruling in Abrego Garcia's case, which required the administration to 'ensure that his case is handled as it would have been had he not been improperly sent to El Salvador.' The judges also ordered the administration to provide an update next week on Melgar-Salmeron's location and the steps that officials will take to facilitate his return.
