6th Circuit Dismisses DOJ Misconduct Complaint Against Judge Boasberg Over Deportation Remarks

WASHINGTON — A federal appeals court judge has dismissed a Justice Department misconduct complaint against U.S. District Judge James E. Boasberg, who had clashed with the Trump administration over deportations to a Salvadoran prison.

The complaint was dismissed on Dec. 19 by Chief Judge Jeffrey S. Sutton of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, though the dismissal order only became public this weekend. The complaint stemmed from allegations that Boasberg made remarks at a closed-door judicial conference in March 2025 suggesting the administration risked creating a constitutional crisis by ignoring federal court rulings.

The conference took place days before Boasberg, the chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, issued an order blocking deportation flights that the Trump administration was carrying out by invoking wartime authorities tied to an 18th-century statute. The Justice Department filed a misconduct complaint after the reported remarks surfaced.

In his dismissal, Sutton wrote that the Justice Department failed to provide a referenced attachment that would corroborate or provide context for the alleged statement made at the closed session. Sutton emphasized that mere repetition of uncorroborated allegations does not support a valid misconduct charge.

"A recycling of unadorned allegations with no reference to a source does not corroborate them. And a repetition of uncorroborated statements rarely supplies a basis for a valid misconduct complaint," Sutton wrote.

Sutton also said that even if Boasberg had made the alleged comment, the topic would not have been "so far afield" from subjects appropriate to the judicial conference and would not amount to an ethics violation. The opinion noted that Chief Justice John Roberts' 2024 year-end report raised broad concerns about threats to judicial independence and respect for court orders, placing the remarks within a larger discussion about the judiciary's role and safety.

The complaint was initially filed with Judge Sri Srinivasan, chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Because that circuit was handling appeals tied to the deportation orders, Srinivasan asked Chief Justice Roberts to transfer the matter to another circuit, and Roberts sent it to the 6th Circuit.

Spokespeople for the Justice Department and for Boasberg's court did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

This dismissal highlights continuing tensions between the judiciary and the executive branch over deportation policy and the protections afforded to judges and court orders under the U.S. Constitution.