Minnesota Chief Judge Orders Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons to Contempt Hearing Over Widespread ICE Defiance of Release Orders
Chief U.S. District Judge Patrick J. Schiltz ordered acting ICE Director Todd Lyons to appear in person at a contempt hearing to show cause after ICE failed to comply with court orders — most prominently in the habeas case of Ecuadorian national Juan Hugo Tobay Robles at Fort Snelling, who did not receive a court‑ordered bond hearing or release. Schiltz, saying his “patience is at an end,” called the step “extraordinary” after dozens of recent ICE violations tied to the Trump administration’s Operation Metro Surge and said Lyons need not appear if parties first file papers confirming Robles’ release; the move comes amid broader clashes between the judge and federal authorities over immigration enforcement.
đź“Ś Key Facts
- Chief U.S. District Judge Patrick J. Schiltz has ordered acting ICE Director Todd Lyons to appear in person for a contempt hearing to "show cause why he should not be held in contempt" for repeated noncompliance with court orders.
- The show‑cause order centers on the habeas case of Ecuadorian national Juan Hugo Tobay Robles, detained at Fort Snelling; Schiltz had ordered ICE to give Robles a bond hearing within seven days or release him, but as of Jan. 23 the detainee had received neither a hearing nor release.
- The contempt hearing was formally set for Friday afternoon; Lyons need not appear if the parties first file papers confirming Tobay Robles has been released from custody.
- Schiltz said he had been "extremely patient" with the Trump administration's Operation Metro Surge but that "the Court’s patience is at an end," calling ordering an agency head to appear an "extraordinary step" taken only after "lesser measures have been tried and failed."
- The judge described this as "one of dozens" of recent court orders ICE has ignored, saying the practical consequence has "almost always been significant hardship" to noncitizens, many of whom have long lawfully lived and worked in the U.S.
- Schiltz linked ICE’s noncompliance to the administration’s decision to send "thousands of agents to Minnesota to detain aliens" without a plan to handle the resulting "hundreds of habeas petitions and other lawsuits."
- The contempt threat is part of a broader pattern of unprecedented federal conduct the judge has flagged, including a recent clash with DOJ over its failed 8th Circuit bid to force him to sign arrest warrants for five anti‑ICE protesters (including former CNN anchor Don Lemon).
- News coverage places the dispute in a tense political context that also includes a recent fatal shooting involving an immigration officer in Minnesota.
đź“° Source Timeline (4)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
January 27, 2026
4:38 PM
Chief Minnesota judge orders acting head of ICE to appear in court to explain himself
New information:
- Schiltz’s written order says, 'The Court’s patience is at an end,' and calls ordering Lyons to appear an 'extraordinary step' prompted by 'extraordinary' ICE violations of court orders.
- He links ICE’s noncompliance to the Trump administration’s decision to send 'thousands of agents to Minnesota to detain aliens' without any plan to handle the 'hundreds of habeas petitions and other lawsuits' that predictably followed.
- Schiltz emphasizes this is 'one of dozens of court orders' ICE has ignored in recent weeks and notes he has repeatedly been 'extremely patient' while officials promised improvements that never materialized.
- The piece connects this contempt threat to the broader pattern of unprecedented federal conduct Schiltz has already flagged, including DOJ’s failed bid to arrest Don Lemon and others over a church protest, and situates it in the political context of a fresh fatal immigration‑officer shooting of a Minnesota citizen.
3:21 PM
Acting ICE director faces contempt hearing
New information:
- Axios reports that Judge Patrick J. Schiltz has formally ordered acting ICE Director Todd Lyons to appear in person Friday afternoon for a contempt hearing to "show cause why he should not be held in contempt" over noncompliance with court orders.
- The article specifies that the triggering violation was ICE’s failure to provide a bond hearing within seven days, as ordered on Jan. 14, or release the petitioner; as of Jan. 23, the detainee had received neither.
- Schiltz’s order, quoted by Axios, states that this case is "one of dozens" of recent orders ICE has failed to obey, and that the practical consequence has "almost always been significant hardship" to noncitizens, many of whom have long lawfully lived and worked in the U.S. and "done absolutely nothing wrong."
- The judge characterizes ordering the head of a federal agency to personally appear as an "extraordinary step" taken only after "lesser measures have been tried and failed," underscoring the depth of the court’s frustration with ICE and the Trump administration’s Minnesota operation.
2:28 PM
Judge in Minnesota orders ICE chief to appear in court
New information:
- Confirms that Judge Patrick Schiltz’s show‑cause order centers on the habeas case of Ecuadorian national Juan Hugo Tobay Robles, detained at Fort Snelling.
- Details that Schiltz’s prior order required ICE to provide Tobay Robles a bond hearing within seven days or release him, and that no hearing occurred by the deadline.
- Quotes Schiltz’s language that he has been "extremely patient" with the Trump administration’s Operation Metro Surge but that his "patience is at an end," and that ordering an agency head to appear is "extraordinary" yet warranted by ICE’s repeated violations.
- Clarifies that Lyons need not appear if the parties first file papers confirming Tobay Robles has been released from custody.
- Adds context that the same judge recently clashed with DOJ over its bid at the 8th Circuit to force him to sign arrest warrants for five anti‑ICE protesters, including former CNN anchor Don Lemon, which the appeals court unanimously rejected.