The U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) on Friday filed a misconduct complaint against a federal judge in Washington over potential bias during hearings on a legal challenge to President Donald Trump’s executive order banning transgender people from serving in the military.
The complaint, filed by DOJ chief of staff Chad Mizelle, alleged that U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes engaged in “hostile and egregious misconduct” and violated the judicial code of conduct when she treated a department lawyer with disrespect during a two-day hearing in the case.
Mizelle cited two instances where Reyes questioned the attorney about his religious beliefs and used him “unwillingly as a physical prop” in a rhetorical exercise during the hearing….