A federal judge has opened proceedings that could result in a contempt charge against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), marking the latest development in President Donald Trump's campaign targeting immigrants and political opponents in Minnesota.

The news was announced Monday by Politico Senior Legal Affairs reporter Josh Gerstein, who posted on X: "JUST IN: Judge Dennis Saylor (GWBush/MA) takes 1st step towards holding DHS in contempt over ICE undercover operation in and near Minneapolis church gym. Orders response by Friday to show cause motion, conference on 9/4."

Gerstein attached a screenshot of the judge's order, which granted "Expedited Consideration" to a request that DHS be held in contempt for violating a previous order barring immigration enforcement in houses of worship. The agency now faces a deadline to "show cause, in writing" why it broke the judge's injunction, or face consequences.

A show-cause order is a standard first step in a contempt inquiry: rather than immediately sanctioning a party, the judge directs it to justify its conduct in writing. If contempt were ultimately established against DHS, remedies available in federal civil contempt proceedings can include orders compelling compliance and monetary penalties. Formal contempt findings against cabinet-level federal agencies are uncommon, which gives even this preliminary stage unusual significance.

According to Politico, the order follows an incident in which an undercover DHS agent blew their cover by accidentally dropping a recording device inside a Minneapolis church. It was also revealed that the DHS investigation involved surveilling the outside of the church and photographing cars in its parking lot. Saylor had issued a temporary injunction in February blocking DHS from conducting such actions in houses of worship. After the agent exposed himself in May, a coalition of churches asked the judge late last week to hold DHS in contempt.

As Politico explains: "It's the latest moment of tension between President Donald Trump's mass deportation efforts and religious institutions. In addition to the potential violation of a court order, the alleged incursion on a house of worship cuts against the administration's message that any infringement on religious freedom — such as the anti-ICE protest that disrupted services in Minnesota — would be met with severe criminal consequences."

Trump has been targeting Minnesota since early this year, sending a "surge" of ICE and DHS agents to the state under claims of conducting deportation sweeps in response to alleged immigration benefit fraud. During a protest at an evangelical church, former CNN host Don Lemon was arrested along with 38 others who were accused of violating the FACE Act — the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, a 1994 statute that also covers places of worship — which makes it illegal to harass and disrupt religious observance. As Politico suggests, DHS's investigation of Minnesota churches conflicts with the administration's self-professed belief in religious liberty.

"Saylor… isn't the only judge to rule that ICE's decision last year to relax restrictions on enforcement at churches threatened religious freedom," Politico notes. "A federal judge in Maryland last year similarly concluded that ICE's enforcement threats chilled religious liberty. That ruling was upheld on Tuesday by the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. The motion filed Thursday asking Saylor to begin the contempt process sets up yet another clash between the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE and the Border Patrol, and the federal courts."

The decisions stem from a marked policy shift: for more than a decade before the restrictions were relaxed, houses of worship, schools, and hospitals had been treated as "sensitive locations" generally off-limits to immigration enforcement under guidance dating to 2011, a framework that was broadened in 2021.

The contempt request was filed by a broad coalition of church groups, including five regional synods of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, three regional Quaker groups, American Baptist Churches USA, the Alliance of Baptists, and Metropolitan Community Churches.