cross-posted from: https://piefed.blahaj.zone/c/us_politics@piefed.blahaj.zone/p/1062082/justice-department-urges-sanctions-for-database-analysis-critical-of-its-noncitize
The Justice Department on Sunday defended the accuracy of a list of what it says are more than 20,000 suspected noncitizens registered to vote in California and suggested that a federal judge consider whether an immigrant rights group and its lawyers should face contempt charges after they published an analysis of the names.
On Friday, U.S. District Court Chief Judge James Boasberg allowed the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, or CHIRLA, access to federal government data on 20,000 people the Trump administration alleges are noncitizen voters in California. Boasberg, based in Washington, D.C., ordered the plaintiffs not to disclose any names on the list and use the data only for their arguments about why they have legal standing to challenge the Trump administration’s use of it.
On Saturday, attorneys for the immigrant rights group filed court papers revealing that their analysis found more than 40% of the people on the list do not appear in the state’s voter file. It also identified 22 people on the list who were likely naturalized U.S. citizens while saying that thousands more U.S. citizens appeared to be on it, as well.
The Justice Department said in a filing Sunday that the analysis by the immigrant rights group had nothing to do with the group’s legal standing and therefore violated Boasberg’s order.
More in the article.
I don’t really get the argument. The judge gave them access to the data for analysis and only ordered that they not reveal names when doing so. The “Justice” department wants contempt charges against the organization for doing just that.
This is how Russia uses its legal system.
No, the judge ordered two things. In addition to not revealing names, the judge also ordered that the group use the data only to prove they have standing, which is the right to sue based on the Administration’s actions. Lawsuits get dismissed all the time due to lack of standing.
So, they examined the data and found it is all bullshit. The DoJ is essentially saying “whether or not it’s bullshit has nothing to do with this group’s right to sue us!”
Which seems like an absurd argument, but that’s all the administration has right now.
Specifically, standing that the plaintiff here, an immigrant rights group, has to be suffering or has to be about to suffer, some kind of real, articulatable harm.
So the group’s argument is probably, “the group of people we represent are being harmed by these bullshit allegations.”. And the DOJ’s argument is probably like, “the group is not the people they represent. If people on the list are harmed, then they need to file their own lawsuits.”
It’s dumb. DOJ has been doing these dumbass, legalistic arguments for the last 22 months.
