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The Supreme Court on Wednesday denied the government’s request for a stay of a district court order prohibiting the Bureau of Prisons from implementing its new policy ending hormone therapy, “sex-trait-modification surgery,” and social accommodations for inmates with gender dysphoria. (Order.) (SCOTUSblog.) (NYT.) For background on the case, see a previous Roundup.
The government on Wednesday asked the Supreme Court to issue a stay pending appeal of a district court preliminary injunction halting government construction of barriers along a portion of the U.S.-Mexico border. The government asked the Court to construe its application as a petition for a writ of certiorari and grant the petition. (Application.) (SCOTUSblog.) (WaPo.)
A divided panel of the Tenth Circuit on Wednesday held in part that the six-month period of “presumptively reasonable detention” of a noncitizen following a final order of removal established under Zadvydas v. Davis is not “resettable,” rejecting the government’s argument that the time limit restarts if a detainee is released and then detained again. (Opinion.)
Judge Denise Cote (S.D.N.Y.) on Tuesday granted summary judgment to current and former federal employees on their claims that the Office of Personnel Management violated the Privacy Act and the Administrative Procedure Act by granting the Department of Government Efficiency access to federal employees’ personally identifiable information. Judge Cote stated that the court would later rule on whether permanent injunctive relief is warranted. (Opinion and Order.)
Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín (N.D. Cal.) on Wednesday issued a preliminary injunction blocking the Department of Homeland Security from implementing its “Surge Initiative Guidance,” which directs agents to “prioritize field investigations questioning people about their voter eligibility” in nine states. Judge Martínez-Olguín held that the program likely constituted voter intimidation in violation of Section 11(b) of the Voting Rights Act. (Order.) (NYT.)
The Justice Department on Tuesday filed motions to disqualify Judge Patrick Schiltz (D. Minn.) and Judge John R. Tunheim (D. Minn.) in immigration cases pending before them due to concerns about “whether they can be impartial in these cases” following interviews they gave The New York Times in which they criticized the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement surge in Minnesota. (Motion to Disqualify.) (X.) (CBS.) The department previously lodged misconduct complaints against the judges with the Judicial Council of the Eighth Circuit. For background on the case, see a previous Roundup.
A coalition of Democrats filed a lawsuit on Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against executive branch agencies and officials seeking to prevent defendants from interfering in ballot counting and “continuing to threaten state and local election officials.” (Complaint.) (NYT.)
President Trump on Tuesday announced a new $25 million program to incentivize the public to come forward with reports of suspected fraud. The president told reporters that he would personally administer the program, stating, “I will be the arbitrator of all of these decisions.” (NYT.)
Pending Interim Order Applications Involving the U.S. Government in the Supreme Court
Mullin v. Friends of the Ruidosa Church: The government on October 21 asked the Supreme Court to issue a stay pending appeal of a district court preliminary injunction halting government construction of barriers along a portion of the U.S.-Mexico border. The government asked the Court to construe its application as a petition for a writ of certiorari and grant the petition. (Application.)