DHS Held in Contempt A federal judge on Tuesday held the Department of Homeland Security in contempt for allegedly delaying compliance with an order to create digital copies of communications from personal and government cell phones used by immigration agents during operations in the Los Angeles area last year. The ruling followed a January court order that required the federal government to expedite imaging the personal cell phones of more than 800 agents involved in controversial immigration raids in 2025. U.S. District Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong, presiding in the Central District of California, imposed a fine of $500 per day on the federal government until it complies with the order to turn over the phones as part of discovery and reimburse plaintiffs’ attorneys for legal costs. Attorneys for DHS admitted in court in June that the agency had not provided the records, stating they were processing government devices at a rate of three phones every two weeks. Plaintiffs argued this pace would take nearly four years to complete, raising concerns about the delay in accessing critical evidence. The case centers on Operation At Large, the Trump administration’s 2025 immigration crackdown in Los Angeles, which drew widespread criticism for its aggressive tactics. Attorneys representing immigrants affected by the raids argued the phones may contain evidence of racial profiling by federal agents. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) highlighted that the Department of Homeland Security had “simply proceeded to thwart” the judge’s order by dragging its feet on imaging government-issued phones and openly defying the requirement for personal devices.#los_angeles #department_of_homeland_security #us_district_judge_maame_ewusi_mensah_frimpong #american_civil_liberties_union #operation_at_large
