On Tuesday, April 21, 2026, Fox News reported that a watchdog group filed a misconduct complaint against Judge James Boasberg, alleging improper coordination with the Biden Department of Justice (DOJ) regarding investigations linked to former President Donald Trump and his associates.

The complaint was filed by the conservative watchdog Center to Advance Security in America (CASA). CASA accuses Boasberg of “probable judicial misconduct” for allegedly consulting with DOJ officials about Arctic Frost, an FBI investigation that led to special counsel Jack Smith charging Trump concerning the 2020 election.

The complaint references internal DOJ meeting notes from 2023, which were recently made public by the Senate Judiciary Committee. These notes detail briefings that Smith’s team had with Boasberg and Judge Beryl Howell, both appointees of President Obama. The briefings pertained to Arctic Frost and a separate probe into Trump’s handling of classified documents. CASA’s complaint, submitted to the D.C. appellate court, highlights the growing divide between Republican and Democrat-appointed judges overseeing critical developments in the investigations and prosecutions of Trump.

CASA’s complaint suggests that Boasberg and Howell were improperly involved in discussions about investigative “strategizing” before charges were brought against Trump. At the time, Boasberg was the incoming chief judge of D.C.’s federal court, succeeding Howell. Fox News Digital confirmed that CASA had also filed a similar complaint against Howell the previous week. The Republican watchdog has called for the court to investigate Boasberg.

Curtis Schube, CASA’s director of research and policy, stated that the facts strongly suggest Boasberg violated the canons of judicial ethics and that an investigation should be promptly opened. Documents released by the Senate committee included notes about a briefing Smith’s team gave Attorney General Merrick Garland on January 13, 2023, shortly after Garland appointed Smith as special counsel. The notes reference meetings with Boasberg and Howell, both of whom became known as Trump’s “nemeses” due to their adverse rulings against the former president.

According to the briefing notes, “[Howell] liked our approach of pursuing the executive privilege litigation in an omnibus fashion.” Omnibus motions allow for consolidated litigation and are typically used to streamline court filings. The briefing notes also mentioned a forthcoming meeting with Boasberg on March 18, 2023, the day after he was set to succeed Howell as chief judge.

CASA’s complaint also noted that Boasberg signed numerous nondisclosure orders, also known as gag orders, that prevented telephone and tech companies from notifying Republican targets when Smith’s team subpoenaed their phone records or other data. Some of those targets included GOP members of Congress, who have openly criticized the Biden DOJ and Boasberg for what they allege is a breach of the Constitution’s speech or debate clause.

The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts stated in December that Boasberg would not have known who the gag orders applied to because prosecutors would not have informed him of whose numbers were listed on the subpoenas, based on the court’s standard practice. Smith has defended his work, testifying to Congress that he followed DOJ policy regarding subpoenas.

CASA argues that Boasberg’s judicial immunity has limitations, stating, “There is no world in which the statutes were designed to protect a judge meeting with prospective litigants to strategize with them on how to win a case in front of them in the future.” Schube added that this is especially concerning when the meetings are designed for the government to determine ways to put its political opposition in jail, which he claims is what Arctic Frost was designed to do.

Critics have suggested that the meetings central to CASA’s complaint could indicate collusion between judges and prosecutors targeting Trump. Others have argued that they were innocuous and normal, designed to achieve efficiency in an already-overwhelmed court system as major investigations took place.

Smith’s investigations led to criminal charges against Trump, alleging he illegally attempted to overturn the 2020 election and retained classified documents. Trump has called the investigations a “witch hunt” and accused all involved of corruption. Republicans have widely condemned the charges as an abuse of power designed to take out the then-leading Republican presidential candidate.

Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, dismissed the classified documents case, finding Smith was improperly appointed special counsel. Smith was appealing that decision when Trump won the 2024 election. Following Trump’s victory, Smith ended both cases, citing a Justice Department policy discouraging the prosecution of sitting presidents.

 

 

Source: Fox News