“A court order is not advisory, and it is not conditional,” U.S. District Court Judge Jerry Blackwell said.
abcnews.go.com
An exasperated and frustrated Department of Homeland Security attorney declared in a stunning moment in court that her job "sucks," the existing legal process "sucks," and that she sometimes wishes that the judge would hold her in contempt so she "can have a full 24 hours of sleep."
Julie Le, who according to public records is a Department of Homeland Security attorney that had been detailed to the U.S. Attorney's office, was called to testify Tuesday in U.S. District Court in St. Paul, Minn., about why the government has been nonresponsive to judicial orders regarding people in ICE detention.
"What do you want me to do? The system sucks," Le told Judge Jerry Blackwell, according to a court transcript obtained by ABC News. "This job sucks. And I am trying [with] every breath that I have so that I can get you what you need."
A review of federal court records shows that Le had been assigned to 91 immigration cases over the past month -- 88 in Minnesota and three in Texas. Most of the cases are habeas petitions filed by immigrants detained by enforcement officials.
Blackwell said the administration has routinely not been following court mandates, ignoring multiple orders for detainees to be released that has resulted in their continued detainment for days or even weeks.
Le also told the judge that she had previously submitted her resignation from her DHS post, "but they couldn't find a replacement. So I gave them a specific time ... to get it done. If they don't, then by all means, I'm going to walk out," she said.
An official confirmed to ABC News that Le is no longer detailed to the U.S. attorney's office. Le did not immediately respond to an ABC News request for comment.
Comment- You have to feel for this woman. On some level, she knows what DHS and ICE are doing is wrong,
Trump was in such a hurry to fire all the attorneys he considers enemies, that the ones who are left are swamped.