Fraud, Lawfare, and Judicial Scandal

Federal immigration enforcement takes center stage this week alongside renewed questions about judicial ethics, accountability, and the limits of federal power.

This week, we report on a significant shift in the Trump Administration’s immigration policy – one which will pursue civil fraud cases against immigration lawyers who have filed false asylum claims. We also highlight the wrongful conduct of two Obama-appointed federal district court judges. One has dismissed the criminal case against a member of MS-13 despite the overwhelming evidence of his guilt. The other conducted an extramarital affair in her office and then lied about it – all of which is sufficient grounds for her impeachment.

Image by Lynne Sladky

DHS to pursue fraud cases against immigration lawyers

As reported by CBS News on May 26, 2026, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) “directed Immigration and Customs Enforcement attorneys to aggressively pursue administrative fraud cases against immigration lawyers accused of filing false asylum claims.”

Immigration fraud has long been a problem – especially by those immigrants, and their lawyers, who file “false asylum claims in federal court.” According to DHS General Counsel James Percival, “millions of illegal aliens have committed fraud on our immigration system.” Immigration lawyers “and powerful Big Law pro bono practices, frequently coach clients to conceal their past or lie about their circumstances when asserting their asylum claims.”

These facts are reflected by the sheer numbers – and dramatic increase – of asylum applications over the last five years. This chart from DHS provides some recent numbers:

This is a signal that immigration officials will finally apply federal law and seek “civil penalties against people accused of immigration-related document fraud, including those who knowingly prepare, file or help file applications that are false or contain false statements.”

Pursuing these civil penalties might be the Trump Administration’s most effective weapon against left-wing lawyers and the Big Law firms that have abused the immigration and asylum process. It has the potential to undercut much of the leftist lawfare machine, and the Trump Administration must devote significant resources to ensure its success. Additionally, findings of fraud would be destructive to the careers of the lawyers who have knowingly submitted fraudulent asylum applications and could ultimately lead to their disbarment.

Image by Gary Grumbach

Judge dismisses criminal case against human trafficker Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia

A Tennessee federal district court judge has dismissed the criminal case against Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia (“Abrego”), concluding there is a presumption the prosecution was vindictive and that the Government did not rebut that presumption.

Abrego, as you might recall, is an illegal immigrant from El Salvador and a member of MS-13 with a history of domestic violence. He was deported to El Salvador in 2022 and challenged that removal in federal court.

As his civil case was ongoing, Abrego was returned to the United States in June of 2025 – because he faced a two-count indictment for conspiring to “bring undocumented aliens” from a number of countries to the United States. According to the indictment, Abrego and his co-conspirators “also worked with transnational criminal organizations in Mexico to transport undocumented aliens through Mexico and into the United States.”

The dismissal of Abrego’s criminal case was ordered by Judge Waverly Crenshaw, an Obama appointee. He noted that the investigation into Abrego, which he maintains was previously closed, was only re-opened after Abrego’s successful lawsuit. This, along with statements by DOJ officials stating the investigation resumed after statements from the Maryland federal judge, “taints the investigation with a vindictive motive.” To Judge Crenshaw, this showed a “realistic likelihood” that the prosecution was vindictive, which gave the Government the burden to prove it wasn’t.

Judge Crenshaw failed to appreciate that the Government had good reason to close their investigation into Abrego. The investigation was opened in December 2022, less than a month after he was stopped in Tennessee. It was only closed after he was removed to El Salvador. As the Government observed, the indictment was only sought after the investigation “revealed additional new evidence previously unknown to anyone”, which “is textbook grounds to rebut the presumption of vindictiveness.”

Perhaps the Government will appeal the dismissal. But in the end, it may not matter. Abrego was ordered not to be removed to El Salvador. But there are other countries to which he may be deported. The Government previously proposed that he may be removed to Liberia, noting that Liberia had agreed to accept Abrego.

Image by Getty Images

Federal district court judge reprimanded for affair with high-ranking police officer.

The Judicial Council of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit has upheld the reprimand of a federal district court judge for conducting an extramarital affair with a high-ranking police officer in her office during working hours. According to excellent research from Marco Polo, the District Court Judge is Eleanor L. Ross (an Obama appointee).

The complaints against the judge were reported by a law clerk, who alleged:

Judge Ross had sexual relations with a uniformed police officer in her office “during working hours and while staff [including the law clerk] were present in chambers and within earshot of the judge’s office.”

The intimate activity could be heard by the law clerk on multiple occasions.

These allegations were corroborated by other clerks. At first, Judge Ross denied the allegations. She then changed her story and admitted the affair took place in her office. The special committee investigating the allegations found that Judge Ross engaged in three instances of judicial misconduct:

(1) She had an extramarital affair in her office, during business hours, within hearing distance of her staff; (2) she attended a partisan political event for Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis; and (3) she made false statements to the Chief Judge of the District.

In a perfect world, this conduct – not only the affair but the lying about the affair – would result in impeachment. While federal district court judges are appointed for life, they can be removed “through impeachment by the House of Representatives and conviction by the Senate.” Impeachment of a federal judge is rare, but it’s also rare for a judge to lie about an affair that took place in her office. We hope House Republicans start the impeachment process with haste.