James Boasberg: “The Trump administration’s willful and knowing actions here constitute probable cause for a finding of contempt.”

The government was already hustling migrants onto planes, betraying a desire to outrun the equitable reach of the judiciary.

The Constitution does not tolerate willful disobedience of judicial orders—especially by officials of a coordinate branch who have sworn an oath to uphold it.

Wouldn’t it have been a better course to return the planes around the United States as opposed to going forward and saying, ‘We don’t care, we’ll do what we want’?

If the DOJ refuses, federal law empowers me to appoint a private attorney to prosecute the defendants for contempt instead, as the interest of justice requires.