A former Department of Justice lawyer, Erez Reuveni, alleges in a whistleblower complaint made public Tuesday that a top Justice Department official, Principal Assistant Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove, suggested the Trump administration might have to disregard court orders in its efforts to deport Venezuelan migrants accused of being gang members. The whistleblower’s claims emerged just before Bove’s scheduled confirmation hearing to become a federal appeals court judge.
In the letter seeking a congressional and Justice Department watchdog investigation, Reuveni asserts that he was forced out and publicly criticized after resisting directives to defy judges and present false or legally unfounded arguments in court. The key accusation in the letter revolves around a Justice Department meeting in March related to President Donald Trump’s plans to utilize the Alien Enemies Act in response to what he described as an invasion by the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua. Reuveni alleges that Bove suggested that the department might need to disregard any court orders that could impede the deportations, even using profanity in his remarks.
Reuveni’s lawyers state that he found Bove’s suggestion alarming and unprecedented, as no DOJ leadership had previously implied that court orders could be blatantly ignored. Following the meeting, Reuveni claims he raised concerns about attempts to violate court orders through dishonest tactics in various cases.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche denied the allegations, stating that at the March meeting, no one proposed ignoring a court order. Blanche criticized the timing of the accusations, calling them a “false hit piece” released ahead of Bove’s confirmation hearing.
After serving in various roles at the Justice Department for nearly 15 years under both Republican and Democratic administrations, Reuveni was promoted under the Trump administration to act as the interim deputy director of the Office of Immigration Litigation. His dismissal came after he acknowledged in a court hearing that a man from El Salvador should not have been deported to a Salvadoran prison and refused to support an appeal brief containing arguments contrary to the law.
Reuveni’s lawyers underscore the serious implications of the Justice Department’s actions, warning that disregarding court orders jeopardizes the safety and rights of individuals, both citizens and noncitizens, who may face violations of due process and the rule of law.
One individual is currently being held under the Alien Enemies Act by the administration. Despite Boasberg’s instruction to redirect any planes en route to El Salvador, this action did not take place. The administration contends that they did not breach any directives, as the orders did not pertain to flights that had already exited U.S. airspace prior to the issuance of Boasberg’s command. Trump recently nominated Bove to occupy a vacant position on the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which handles cases from Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Given his involvement in various controversial actions of the department following Trump’s return to the White House in January, Bove was already expected to encounter rigorous scrutiny from the Senate Judiciary Committee. Senator Dick Durbin, the ranking Democrat on the committee, highlighted that the allegations made by Reuveni are indicative of a wider effort by President Trump and his supporters to erode the Justice Department’s dedication to upholding the rule of law. Durbin commended Reuveni for speaking out and holding Bove accountable, urging his Republican colleagues in the Senate not to ignore the serious implications of confirming Bove as a circuit court judge for life. Democrats have expressed concerns regarding several other decisions made by Bove, such as his dismissal of New York Mayor Eric Adams’ corruption case, which resulted in the resignation of a senior New York federal prosecutor and other high-ranking officials from the Justice Department. Additionally, Bove accused FBI officials of insubordination for failing to disclose the identities of agents involved in investigating the U.S. Capitol riot and mandated the termination of a group of prosecutors handling the January 6 criminal cases.
