Federal Judge Dismisses Judicial Misconduct Complaint Against James Boasberg

It's a decision that was rendered in December, but just became public over the weekend: A judicial misconduct complaint filed against U.D. District Court for the District of Columbia Chief Judge James Boasberg was dismissed by 6th Circuit Court of Appeals Chief Judge Jeffrey Sutton.

A judicial misconduct complaint against Chief U.S. District Judge James E. Boasberg of D.C. has been dismissed because the Justice Department failed to show that he exhibited bias against the Trump administration.
The allegations against Boasberg, a former prosecutor nominated to the bench by President Barack Obama, were widely recirculated by conservative media. But when a federal appeals court requested evidence to back them up, administration officials failed to provide it, Chief Judge Jeffrey S. Sutton of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit said in a decision dismissing the misconduct complaint. The decision, dated Dec. 19, was made public Saturday.

The complaint was filed by then-Chief of Staff for Attorney General Pam Bondi, Chad Mizelle, in late July of 2025, following media reports of comments Boasberg allegedly made during a March 11, 2025, judicial conference.

Leaked: Memo Shows Infamous Left-Wing Judge James Boasberg Expressing Bias Against Donald Trump

The concerning comments attributed to Boasberg were described thusly by The Federalist's Margot Cleveland:

...In a memorandum obtained exclusively by The Federalist, a member of the Judicial Conference summarized the March meeting, including a “working breakfast” at which Justice Roberts spoke. According to the memorandum, “District of the District of Columbia Chief Judge James Boasberg next raised his colleagues’ concerns that the Administration would disregard rulings of federal courts leading to a constitutional crisis.”

Those reported remarks (quite understandably) caused more than a few raised eyebrows when they came to light last summer, particularly in light of several subsequent rulings by Boasberg that appeared rather antagonistic to the Trump administration. Had he pre-judged President Trump and his administration? Could he properly render unbiased rulings in cases involving them?

The complaint asserting judicial misconduct on Boasberg's part was initially filed with the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, but Chief Judge Sri Srinivasan requested that Chief Justice Roberts transfer it to another circuit since the D.C. Circuit is overseeing several appeals from decisions involving Boasberg. Roberts transferred the case to the 6th Circuit, and Sutton, who heads up the Judicial Council for the 6th Circuit, got the call.

In dismissing the complaint, Sutton keyed in on the fact that the DOJ did not attach Boasberg's purported statement in support of the complaint:

The Department identified one source of evidence, Attachment A, for the judge’s statement and for the setting in which it occurred. The complaint, however, did not include the attachment. The D.C. Circuit contacted the Department about the missing attachment and explained that, if it failed to submit the attachment, the circuit would consider the complaint as submitted. The Department did not supply the attachment.

It's unclear why the DOJ would not have included the attachment or supplied it when prompted by the D.C. Circuit.

Sutton went further in concluding that even had the statement been properly attached, the setting in which it was made did not amount to "public comment" so as to run afoul of the Judicial Conduct Rules. Further, he noted that any issues with Boasberg's rulings on the cases before him have other avenues of redress (e.g., motion to recuse, appeal) and aren't matters that can properly be remedied by the Judicial Council.

As some will likely ask, Sutton was appointed by George W. Bush. For what it's worth, a review of some of his other notable rulings doesn't exactly lend one to the conclusion that he skews leftward in his views, but undoubtedly, some will find this decision disappointing.

The full order may be viewed here.

Editor’s Note: Do you enjoy RedState’s conservative reporting that takes on the radical left and woke media? Support our work so that we can continue to bring you the truth.

Join RedState VIP and use the promo code FIGHT to get 60% off your VIP membership!