Justice Department appeals contempt sanction against federal lawyer in ICE release case

The Justice Department has filed a brief with the Eighth Circuit urging reversal of a district court contempt order that targeted Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Isihara after Immigration and Customs Enforcement failed to follow a release order for detainee Rigoberto Soto Jimenez. The order, imposed by Judge Laura Provinzino, required ICE to release Jimenez in Minnesota and return his belongings, but ICE instead moved him to Texas and initially withheld his property.

Although ICE later retrieved the property, preventing any fine from accruing, the department argues that penalizing an attorney for a client’s actions is an improper coercive tactic. Justice Department attorney Daniel Tenny emphasized the need for a clear court directive specifying the attorney’s obligations at the time of the contempt filing. The appellate panel, including Judges Bobby Shepherd, James Loken and Steven Colloton, questioned the standing and specificity of the contempt order, while amicus counsel Jeffrey Justman argued the attorney’s failure to forward the order justified the sanction. The case highlights tensions over attorney accountability during the surge of immigration-related habeas petitions.