Court throws out lawsuit by Trump administration against all Maryland federal judges

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Yahoo! News/AP

Tue, August 26, 2025 at 10:41 AM EDT


BALTIMORE (AP) -- A federal judge on Tuesday threw out the Trump administration's lawsuit against Maryland's entire federal bench over an order by the chief judge that stopped the immediate deportation of migrants challenging their removals. U.S. District Judge Thomas Cullen granted a request by the judges to toss the case.

Cullen was nominated to the federal bench by Trump in 2020. He serves in the Western District of Virginia, but he was tapped to oversee the case because all 15 of Maryland's federal judges are named as defendants, a highly unusual circumstance that reflects the Republican administration's aggressive response to judges who slow or stop its policies.

Cullen expressed skepticism of the lawsuit during a hearing in August. He questioned why it was necessary for the Trump administration to sue all the judges as a means of challenging the order. Signed by Chief Maryland District Judge George L. Russell III, the order prevents the Trump administration from immediately deporting any immigrants seeking review of their detention in Maryland district court. It blocks their removal until 4 p.m. on the second business day after their habeas corpus petition is filed.

The order says it aims to maintain existing conditions and the potential jurisdiction of the court, ensure immigrant petitioners are able to participate in court proceedings and access attorneys and give the government "fulsome opportunity to brief and present arguments in its defense."

Read more: https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/court-throws-lawsuit-trump-administration-144112352.html

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Link to RULING (PDF) - https://t.co/SeSkty8ja0

( LetMyPeopleVote)


REFERENCES

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143485655
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143491086
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143499699
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143511904
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143512497

[no_hypocrisy]

1. I suppose this means that there's nothing left for TSF to do but

to fire all the federal judges in all the Circuit Courts and invalidate the Judicial System entirely whereby he, alone, will be "The Judge" because he knows everything about everything.

[angrychair]

3. "no one knows more about the law than I do"

NO One knows more about the LAW than I Do. I COULD HAVE BEEN A JUDGE, I'M SO SMART, BUT I DECIDED TO BE a PRESIDENT. MANY Consider ME the Greatest legal MIND The world has EVER Known. That's what many PEOPLE are Saying. Maybe I will FIRE ALL THE JUDGES AND Just do it all MYSELF. THAT Is what many PEOPLE are saying Should happen. Maybe I Will, I Don't Know.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION IN THIS MATTER.

[OldBaldy1701E]

9. Deliciously perfect! (n/t)

[Attilatheblond]

10. He knows so much about the law that his sister had to resign as a judge due to her getting involved with his frauds

What he knows about the law is that it thwarts his plans and must be abolished

[SWBTATTReg]

11. Ha ha hah!! A very good copy of tRUMP/Gov. G in Calif. Both of you should start a movement to parody tRUMP's idiotic

posts and boosting of his 'vast' intelligence (pardon me as I throw up...blah!!).

Very good post, I loved it!

[angrychair]

15. My favorite so far this year

Was a video of him rambling about being the greatest expert in the world on grass.
He literally said: "No one in the world knows more grass than I do"
Then some more rambling about grass. Not even sure what the context was but I'm not sure it matters. 🤣

He is like a parody of himself. Its just completely bonkers

[Sneederbunk]

12. Or at least send the National Guard to their houses.

[republianmushroom]

2. Thank you Judge Cullen.

[FakeNoose]

4. Thank you U.S. District Judge Thomas Cullen

(I find it hard to believe that a federal prosecutor actually wasted time writing up this worthless lawsuit.)

The courageous order by Chief Maryland District Judge George L. Russell III which prevents the Chump Administration from immediately deporting any immigrants seeking review of their detention in Maryland district court, will stand for the time being.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

5. Judge dismisses Trump lawsuit against Maryland-based judges over handling of immigration cases

The Trump administration alleged that the court had no authority to issue a standing order that imposes an automatic, two-day pause in deportation cases.

Judge dismisses Trump lawsuit against Maryland-based judges over handling of immigration cases

The Trump administration alleged that the court had no authority to issue a standing order that imposes an automatic, two-day pause in deportation cases.

www.nbcnews.com/politics/pol...

— Raymond Norman (@raymondnorman.bsky.social) 2025-08-26T15:19:48.300Z

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/judge-dismisses-trump-lawsuit-maryland-based-judges-handling-immigrati-rcna227233

WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Tuesday dismissed an unusual Trump administration lawsuit against every federal judge in Maryland over a standing order that limits the government’s ability to quickly deport immigrants.

U.S. District Judge Thomas Cullen, who normally sits in Virginia but was assigned the case because the Maryland judges could not participate, wrote in the ruling that filing suit against the judges was not the correct avenue with which to challenge the order.

At issue was a standing order issued by Chief Judge George Russell on May 21 and updated a week later that described how federal judges in Maryland should handle cases involving immigrants facing an imminent risk of deportation. The order imposes a temporary stay of deportation for two business days while a case is considered.

The Justice Department sued, saying Russell had no authority to issue such a blanket order that effectively acts as a broad injunction against government actions without any assessment of whether the individual immigrants have valid cases.

But Cullen, who was appointed by President Donald Trump, concluded that the administration would have to find another way to challenge the order instead of taking the unusual and confrontational approach of suing the judges directly.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

6. trump appointed judge also calls Trump and his admin's attack on judges a "smear" that is "unprecedented and unfortunate

Link to tweet

[Bayard]

7. Calling for Judge Cullen's removal in 5...4...3....2......

Our tax dollars at work filing frivolous lawsuits.

[Fil1957]

8. This lawsuit is part of the "spaghetti to the wall" approach. The Trump administration will do every thing they

can think of no matter how ridiculous or crazy to move their agenda forward. Unfortunately some of this stuff will stick.

[Tanuki]

13. How much tax money is being wasted with these

frivolous lawsuits, or defending Trump when people and organizations he has illegally fired or otherwise screw over push back with lawsuits?

[WestMichRad]

14. A lot of judges in MD ...

… will be receiving unordered pizza delivery tonight.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

16. Deadline: Legal Blog--Trump appointee calls out Trump administration's efforts to 'smear' judges

Judge Thomas Cullen called executive officials’ remarks in recent months “both unprecedented and unfortunate.”

Trump appointee calls out Trump administration’s efforts to ‘smear’ judges www.msnbc.com/deadline-whi...

— @jimrissmiller.bsky.social 2025-08-26T18:37:41.370Z

Link to tweet

https://www.msnbc.com/deadline-white-house/deadline-legal-blog/trump-judges-thomas-cullen-smear-judiciary-rcna227238

President Donald Trump’s second term has been marked by his administration’s attempts to bend or break the law and lashing out at judges who stand in the way. The administration’s remarks against judges led one of Trump’s own judicial appointees to speak out in a published opinion on Tuesday.

U.S. District Judge Thomas Cullen noted that in recent months, executive officials and their spokespeople “have described federal district judges across the country as ‘left-wing,’ ‘liberal,’ ‘activists,’ ‘radical,’ ‘politically minded,’ ‘rogue,’ ‘unhinged,’ ‘outrageous, overzealous, [and] unconstitutional,’ ‘[c]rooked,’ and worse.”......

But he wrote that “this concerted effort by the Executive to smear and impugn individual judges who rule against it is both unprecedented and unfortunate.”......

“Much as the Executive fights the characterization, a lawsuit by the executive branch of government against the judicial branch for the exercise of judicial power is not ordinary,” Cullen wrote in dismissing the case, adding: “Whatever the merits of its grievance with the judges of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, the Executive must find a proper way to raise those concerns.”,,,,,,

Notably, Cullen cited the Abrego case in his ruling Tuesday. Specifically, he cited an opinion from April by appellate Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III, a Reagan appointee who has likewise called out the administration’s actions.

Cullen and Wilkinson haven’t been the only GOP appointees to do so. It’s unlikely they’ll be the last.