Judges, 128 of the them, file ethics complaint against counsel for Homeland Security

The general counsel for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is now facing an ethics complaint over his social media posts about the “worst of the worst” judges, reported the ABA Journal.

In a complaint filed with the Florida Bar on Tuesday, 128 retired federal and state judges, the Democracy Defenders Fund and the Lawyers Defending American Democracy allege that general counsel James Percival’s posts “not only constitute serious professional misconduct, but they threaten the rule of law and increase the risk of violence against judges.”

Specifically, they allege that Percival violated Florida Rule of Professional Conduct 4-8.2(a), which bars lawyers from impugning the qualifications and integrity of judges or other officers.

“The posts were attacks on the characters of four sitting judges, based on mischaracterizations of the underlying cases and without concern for the repercussions of those statements,” according to the complaint. “Nothing exempts federal officials who are licensed by the state of Florida from the Rules of Professional Conduct. Nor do the rules provide for an excuse from investigating federal officials like Mr. Percival.”

On July 23, Percival published a list called the “Worst of the Worst, District Judge Edition” on his official X social media page, formerly known as Twitter. According to the complaint, this is the same label that the DHS uses for a series highlighting immigrants it has deported.

Judge Matthew Kennelly of the Northern District of Illinois, Judge Allison Burroughs of the District of Massachusetts, Judge Paula Xinis of the District of Maryland and Judge Hernán Vera of the Central District of California were included in the list. Percival “continued to attack other judges” in separate posts later, the complaint also said.

A spokesperson for the DHS on Wednesday told Bloomberg Law, which has additional coverage, that Percival’s posts were “nothing more than a factual review of judicial decisions and their real-world consequences.”

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