Judge Reyes Rejects DOJ Bid to Remove Her From Golf Case

U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes on October 18 rejected the Justice Department’s request that she step aside from the case over a proposed redevelopment of East Potomac Park’s public golf course. The ruling leaves the lawsuit before Reyes as she considers whether recent tree removal was maintenance or part of the proposed overhaul. At a hearing on October 19, Reyes questioned the administration’s claim that the tree clearing and redevelopment plans were unrelated. “There is no universe in which all of this coincidentally happened all at the same time,” she said, according to reports of the hearing. The government has said the work followed a 2019 National Park Service plan to remove dead, dying and hazardous trees. The connection between that work and the proposed redesign remains disputed. Reyes’s recusal decision found that the government had not met the demanding legal standard for disqualifying a judge. The Justice Department had argued that her statements during an earlier hearing showed hostility toward government lawyers and raised concerns about impartiality. Reyes said the request did not establish grounds for her removal, and the case remains assigned to her. The...