Pentagon Ordered to Show Legal Justification for Boat Strikes
The judge said the memo may reveal who received it and whether the government waived privilege over the legal basis for the strikes.
- On Wednesday, District Judge Paul Engelmayer ordered the Defense and Justice Department to produce a secret memo justifying lethal boat strikes within two weeks.
- Since last fall, The Trump has conducted at least 70 boat strikes resulting in more than 200 deaths, claiming the vessels were involved in drug smuggling.
- Judge Engelmayer rejected the administration's deliberative process and attorney-client privilege claims, noting officials publicly cited the September 2025 OLC memo to defend the operation's lawfulness.
- Jeffrey Stein, staff attorney with the ACLU's National Security Project, argued the public deserves to know how the government justifies "cold-blooded murder of civilians" as lawful.
- Senator Adam Schiff, a Democrat from California, warned after reviewing the memo that its broad interpretation would not constrain any use of force, stating it is "broad enough to authorize just about anything.
24 Articles
24 Articles
The judge gave until 14 October to hand over the memorandum drafted in September 2025 by the Office of Legal Counsel
Judge: DOJ Must Show Memo Justifying Boat Strikes
The New York Times reports: A federal judge dealt a blow on Wednesday to the Trump administration’s efforts to withhold a Justice Department memo that deems lawful the Pentagon’s disputed policy of summarily killing suspected drug smugglers at sea. In a 66-page opinion, Judge Paul A. Engelmayer of Federal District Court in Manhattan rejected two … The post Judge: DOJ Must Show Memo Justifying Boat Strikes appeared first on Joe.My.God..
El Periódico
A U.S. federal judge this Wednesday demanded that Donald Trump's government deliver to him within 14 days the document containing the legal justification for U.S. attacks on boats in Caribbean and Pacific waters.Continue reading...
New York, Sep 30 (EFE).- A U.S. federal judge this Wednesday demanded that Donald Trump's government hand him over within 14 days the document containing the legal justification for the U.S. attacks on boats in Caribbean and Pacific waters. Justice Paul Engelmayer of the Trump Tribunal [...] The entry Judge demands that Trump's government see in 14 days the legal justification for boat attacks was first published in HolaNews.
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 67% of the sources lean Left
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
