DOJ Files Misconduct Complaint Against Minnesota Federal Judges

The Department of Justice filed a judicial misconduct complaint on Wednesday against seven federal judges in the District of Minnesota for speaking to The New York Times about immigration cases.

Attorney General Todd Blanche stated the judges' actions were a clear violation of their ethical duties. The complaint alleges the judges engaged in an unethical partisan press tour on immigration cases. The New York Times published an article on September 17, 2026, featuring Judge Patrick Schiltz and six other judges who discussed last winter's tumult and the impact of immigration enforcement surges on their court.

Judge Schiltz reportedly sat for a 90-minute interview, and six of the seven judges who held active status in Minnesota last winter agreed to speak to the paper. The DOJ is seeking recusal of these judges from all criminal or civil cases involving the Department of Homeland Security due to perceived bias. The complaint was filed with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, which is urged to investigate the misconduct.

Judges are ethically prohibited from commenting publicly on pending cases or making political statements concerning matters before them. The complaint argues that the judges' public conduct is particularly egregious and that they flagrantly violated the Code of Judicial Conduct with their improper and unethical comments.