Trump Officials Face Criminal Contempt for 'Willful Disobedience' After Judge Orders Flights to El Salvador Halted

Officials in the Trump administration will face criminal contempt for "willful disobedience" after ignoring a judge's order to halt flights carrying undocumented Americans to El Salvador last month.

In March, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg ordered the Trump administration to delay the deportation of 130 Venezuelan migrants to the Terrorism Confinement Center in El Salvador without due process. President Donald Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act to circumvent the judge's orders, HuffPost reported.

In Wednesday's ruling, Boasberg determined the Trump administration has until April 23 "to confirm times and numbers: how many passengers the two flights carried, whether they were all deported pursuant to the Proclamation, and when they were transferred out of U.S. custody." Trump officials have attempted to sidestep the request by claiming the information could "jeopardize state secrets."

"The court is skeptical that such information rises to the level of a state secret. As noted, the Government has widely publicized details of the flights through social media and official announcements," Judge Boasberg wrote in the newly released ruling.

"The Constitution does not tolerate willful disobedience of judicial orders—especially by officials of a coordinate branch who have sworn an oath to uphold it," he added.