Federal Judge Throws Out Trump DOJ Subpoenas Targeting Tim Walz, Calling Them 'Blatantly Unlawful'

A federal judge has tossed out a set of Justice Department grand-jury subpoenas aimed at Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and other state and local officials, delivering a stinging rebuke to the Trump administration's use of criminal process against its political adversaries. In a 29-page ruling unsealed Monday, U.S. District Judge Patrick Schiltz wrote that there was "no doubt" the subpoenas had been issued to damage Walz and his allies.

"Initiating a criminal investigation in order to harass political opponents or to coerce them into taking official action — particularly official action that the federal government cannot directly require those political opponents to take — is a blatantly unlawful and unethical use [of] the grand-jury process," Schiltz wrote. The judge, who was appointed by President George W. Bush, described the subpoenas as part of a pattern of efforts to weaponize the justice system.

The subpoenas were issued on Jan. 20 against the backdrop of an aggressive federal immigration surge in Minnesota that drew widespread protests. They sought an expansive amount of information not only from Walz but from Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, and the Hennepin County Attorney's Office and Board of Commissioners — a sweeping demand tied to the officials' decisions about cooperating with federal immigration enforcement.

Schiltz found that the investigation was "extraordinarily broad" and that the government had failed to articulate a legitimate criminal purpose. Rather than pursuing genuine wrongdoing, he concluded, prosecutors appeared to be trying to punish or pressure officials over policy choices the federal government has no power to compel — a line of reasoning that goes to the heart of the separation between law enforcement and politics.

Walz, the 2024 Democratic vice-presidential nominee, said in a statement that a federal court had found the Justice Department's investigation into him and other Minnesota officials to be politically motivated, unconstitutional and meritless. Frey and Ellison welcomed the decision as a vindication of state and local leaders who had resisted federal pressure during the immigration crackdown.

The ruling is among the more pointed judicial findings to date that the administration sought to turn the machinery of criminal investigation against elected critics. While the Justice Department can appeal, Schiltz's order quashes the subpoenas as written and adds to a growing body of court decisions testing how far the executive branch can go in pursuing officials who decline to carry out its priorities.