On June 24, the U.S. Department of Justice filed an unprecedented complaint against all 15 of the federal district court judges in Maryland, as well as the clerk of the Maryland district court, for engaging in what Attorney General Pam Bondi calls an “egregious example of unlawful judicial overreach into the Executive Branch’s ability to enforce and administer federal [immigration] law.”

If successful, it may be the first time a judgment against federal judges has been rendered in such a very historic case.

The chief culprit in this innovative lawsuit is Chief Judge George Russell, a Barack Obama appointee who became the chief judge in 2024. He and the other federal judges are accused of violating federal immigration law, the requirements imposed by the Supreme Court before a preliminary injunction can be granted, and the federal law governing the promulgation of the local rules of a federal court. 

These violations are tied into a “Standing Order” and an “Amended Standing Order” that Russell issued on May 21 and May 28 that apply to all the judges and all their courts. Apparently, having to work outside of normal business hours and weekends interferes too much with the leisure time of the judges since the orders are based on........

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