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Gabinete de los Horrores: Pam Bondi -- Attorney General

Published by: Mortui Vivos Docent Intelligence Project
Last Updated: 2026-02-12
Confidence: HIGH (50+ independent sources, court records, Congressional testimony, DOJ memoranda, federal lawsuits, video evidence)

Summary

Zero Accountability

As of February 12, 2026, not a single federal agent has been charged with a civil rights violation under Bondi's DOJ for any killing, shooting, or beating during immigration enforcement operations.

Pamela Jo Bondi is the 87th Attorney General of the United States, confirmed by the Senate on February 4, 2025, by a vote of 54-46. A former Florida state prosecutor with no federal prosecution experience, Trump impeachment defense lawyer, and registered lobbyist for the private prison company GEO Group, Bondi controls the Department of Justice -- the institution that decides whether federal agents who kill civilians face civil rights investigations, whether protesters face federal felony charges, and whether the administration's deportation machine operates within the law.

In her first year as Attorney General, Bondi has transformed the DOJ into the legal enforcement arm of the administration's immigration agenda. She has refused to investigate the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minneapolis, instead directing DOJ resources to investigate Good's grieving widow and to prosecute protesters who disrupted a church service led by an ICE official. She fired or forced out prosecutors who objected, gutted the Civil Rights Division (losing approximately 75% of its attorneys), and personally shut down an FBI civil rights investigation into Good's killing. She weaponized the Reconstruction-era Ku Klux Klan Act (18 USC 241) -- originally designed to protect Black Americans from white supremacist conspiracies -- against civil rights activists protesting ICE. She issued legal guidance claiming the 1798 Alien Enemies Act authorizes warrantless home searches and deportation without judicial review, then celebrated when courts shielded the administration from contempt proceedings after it defied a judge's order to stop deportation flights. She coerced Apple and Google into removing ICE-tracking apps from their stores. She pressured Minnesota to hand over voter data in what state officials called "ransom" in exchange for ending immigration enforcement. She restricted asylum for domestic violence and gang violence survivors, reversing Biden-era protections. She toured Angola prison -- built on a former slave plantation -- with DHS Secretary Noem and called it "an example for the rest of this country."

Throughout all of this, GEO Group -- her former lobbying client -- has earned over $1 billion in ICE contracts in a single year. She has not recused herself. The career ethics official who might have required recusal was removed and replaced with political appointees weeks after she took office.

As of February 12, 2026, not a single federal agent has been charged with a civil rights violation under Bondi's DOJ for any killing, shooting, or beating during immigration enforcement operations.

Position and Authority

What She Controls

The Attorney General is the chief law enforcement officer of the United States. Bondi oversees approximately 115,000 DOJ employees and controls:

  • Federal prosecution authority: All 93 U.S. Attorney's Offices, which decide whether to bring federal charges against anyone -- including federal agents who use excessive force and protesters who interfere with immigration operations.
  • Civil Rights Division: The division historically responsible for investigating police and federal agent killings. Under Bondi, this division has lost approximately 75% of its attorneys through firings and resignations.
  • FBI: The Federal Bureau of Investigation, whose agents open and conduct civil rights investigations. Bondi shut down the FBI's investigation into Renee Good's killing.
  • Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR): The immigration court system -- approximately 600 judges handling 3.8 million pending cases. Bondi requested $844 million for EOIR and issued asylum-restricting rulings binding on all immigration judges.
  • Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA): The appellate body for immigration cases, which Bondi directed to bar bond for most detainees and to allow "pretermission" (summary dismissal) of asylum claims.
  • U.S. Marshals Service, DEA, ATF, Bureau of Prisons: All redirected toward immigration enforcement under Bondi's directives.

The Unique Power of the AG Over Immigration

Unlike other Cabinet officials, the Attorney General has a statutory power unique in immigration law: the ability to personally "certify" any immigration appeal case to herself and issue a binding precedential decision. This means Bondi can -- and has -- personally overruled immigration court decisions to restrict asylum access nationwide, with the stroke of a pen. No other Cabinet member has this kind of direct, personal lawmaking power over immigration.

Chain of Command

Bondi reports directly to President Trump. She works alongside DHS Secretary Kristi Noem (who controls ICE and CBP operationally) and Deputy AG Todd Blanche (who publicly announced DOJ would not investigate the Good and Pretti killings). FBI Director Kash Patel has coordinated arrests of protesters alongside DOJ. The "Border Czar" Tom Homan and White House Senior Advisor Stephen Miller coordinate policy from the White House side.

Background

Early Life and Education

Born November 17, 1965, in Temple Terrace, Florida. Her father, Joseph C. Bondi Jr., was a professor and served as mayor of Temple Terrace (1974-1978). Her mother, Patsy Loretta Bondi, was an elementary school teacher. Fourth-generation Floridian. BA in Criminal Justice from the University of Florida (1987). JD from Stetson University College of Law (1990).

Career as Prosecutor (1994-2009)

Served as an assistant state attorney in Hillsborough County, Florida, for 18 years, trying cases ranging from domestic violence to capital murder. No federal prosecution experience. Known for a personable courtroom style and frequent appearances as a legal analyst on Fox News and CNN.

Florida Attorney General (2011-2019)

Year Event
2010 Elected Florida AG -- first woman in the role
2014 Re-elected -- first Republican to win a second term
2011-2019 Led crackdowns on opioid "pill mills," securing closure of 98 of the top 100 oxycodone dispensers
2011-2019 Spearheaded anti-human trafficking initiatives; created Florida Statewide Human Trafficking Council
2013 Secured $3.25 billion Deepwater Horizon settlement
2013 Actively opposed same-sex marriage in Florida courts

Lobbying Career (2019-2024)

After leaving office, Bondi joined Ballard Partners, a lobbying firm with deep ties to Trump and his chief of staff Susie Wiles. She registered as a lobbyist for more than 30 clients:

  • GEO Group -- the private prison company whose largest revenue source is ICE contracts (now earning $1 billion+ annually from ICE alone)
  • Amazon, Uber, General Motors, Carnival -- major corporations
  • Government of Qatar -- as a registered foreign agent under FARA, earning $115,000 per month for anti-human trafficking lobbying related to the 2022 FIFA World Cup
  • Florida Sheriffs Association

Trump Defense Lawyer (2019-2020)

In 2020, Bondi served as one of President Trump's defense lawyers during his first impeachment trial. Trump was accused of pressuring Ukrainian President Zelensky to investigate Joe Biden in exchange for military aid. Bondi defended Trump's actions on the Senate floor. Previously, she served on Trump's communications team for impeachment messaging.

America First Policy Institute (2024)

By 2024, Bondi led the legal arm of the America First Policy Institute, a Trump-aligned think tank. This placed her directly in Trump's orbit for the transition.

Nomination and Confirmation

  • November 21, 2024: Trump nominates Bondi after Matt Gaetz withdraws
  • January 15-16, 2025: Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearings
  • January 29, 2025: Committee approves nomination 12-10 (party-line)
  • February 4, 2025: Senate confirms 54-46 (only Democratic "yes" vote: John Fetterman)
  • February 5, 2025: Sworn in by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas

During confirmation, Bondi pledged: "Every case will be prosecuted based on the facts and the law that is applied in good faith -- period. Politics have got to be taken out of the system."

Sources: Wikipedia, Ballotpedia, Britannica, NPR, CNN, PBS, Senate Judiciary Committee, DOJ.gov, Fortune, Rolling Stone. Confidence: CONFIRMED.

Key Decisions

1. Day One Directives (February 5, 2025)

On her first day, Bondi signed 14 memoranda redirecting the Department of Justice:

  • Weaponization Working Group: Established to review "politicized prosecutions" from the Biden era -- in practice, used to target prosecutors who worked on January 6 cases and Trump investigations
  • Federal death penalty reinstatement: Ended the moratorium on federal executions
  • Attorney loyalty directive: All DOJ attorneys must "zealously" defend and advance the president's interests or face "discipline and potentially termination"
  • Rescinded Biden-era memos on school threat assessments, "radical traditionalist" Catholic monitoring
  • Shut down FBI's Foreign Influence Task Force
  • Shut down DOJ's Task Force KleptoCapture (Russian oligarch sanctions enforcement)
  • Cut back enforcement of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA)

The loyalty directive would later become the legal basis for firing prosecutors who objected to investigating Renee Good's widow instead of her killer.

Sources: NPR, Fox News, CNN, NBC, Wikipedia. Confidence: CONFIRMED.

2. Sanctuary Jurisdiction Crackdown (February-August 2025)

Bondi issued directives threatening 32 "sanctuary jurisdictions" with loss of federal grants and prosecution of state and local officials who "obstruct federal immigration efforts." Key actions:

  • Sent threatening letters to mayors and governors nationwide
  • Directed DOJ to pursue enforcement actions against non-compliant jurisdictions
  • Redirected FBI, DEA, ATF, and U.S. Marshals Service resources toward immigration enforcement
  • Senate Democrats warned this diverted resources from "critical national security and public safety missions"

Governor Newsom's office responded by formally reminding Bondi of ethical obligations for DOJ lawyers.

Sources: The Hill, NPR, Governor of California, Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats. Confidence: CONFIRMED.

3. Alien Enemies Act Guidance and CECOT Deportations (March 2025)

No Due Process

Bondi's memo claims the 1798 Alien Enemies Act authorizes warrantless home searches and deportation without judicial review -- no hearing, no appeal, no court oversight.

On March 14, 2025, Bondi issued "Guidance for Implementing the Alien Enemies Act," claiming the 1798 wartime statute authorizes:

  • Warrantless home searches of suspected gang members
  • Deportation without judicial review -- the memo states those removed under the AEA are "not entitled" to hearings, appeals, or judicial review
  • No notice requirement -- written notices given to deportees stated: "You are not entitled to a hearing, appeal, or judicial review of this notice and warrant of apprehension and removal"

Approximately 238-250 Venezuelans were deported to El Salvador's CECOT mega-prison via deportation flights despite a court order from Judge Boasberg to stop them. The DOJ argued that the planes were over international waters when the order was issued and therefore outside the judge's jurisdiction. A filing signed by Bondi personally and Deputy AG Blanche defended the administration's defiance.

Many deportees were flagged based on tattoos. One man, a gay makeup artist with an active asylum claim, was singled out for his tattoos. Another was flagged for a clock tattoo showing the time of his daughter's birth. A third had an autism awareness ribbon tattoo. A federal judge later ruled the deportations violated due process, finding the gang allegations ranged from "flimsy" to "frivolous."

Sources: Reason, NPR, PBS, ABC News, CNN, CBS News, Human Rights Watch, CLINIC, Supreme Court records. Confidence: CONFIRMED.

4. Firing the Lawyer Who Told the Truth: The Abrego Garcia Case (March-June 2025)

Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran man living in the United States, was illegally deported to CECOT on March 15, 2025. An immigration judge had barred his removal to El Salvador in 2019 due to persecution risk. He had never been charged with or convicted of a crime.

DOJ lawyer Erez Reuveni told U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis that Abrego Garcia "should not have been removed to El Salvador." Bondi suspended, then fired Reuveni for this admission. Bondi stated DOJ attorneys who fail to "zealously advocate on behalf of the United States" will "face consequences."

When the Supreme Court ordered the government to "facilitate" Abrego Garcia's return, Bondi said in an Oval Office meeting with Trump and Salvadoran President Bukele that his return was "up to El Salvador." Abrego Garcia was eventually returned nearly two months later -- and immediately arrested on unrelated federal charges from a 2022 traffic stop. His lawyer called the prosecution an attempt "to punish him for having the audacity to fight back."

Sources: Wikipedia, ABC News, NPR, SCOTUSblog, Supreme Court ruling. Confidence: CONFIRMED.

5. Asylum Restrictions: Overruling Domestic Violence and Gang Violence Protections (September 2, 2025)

Using her unique AG certification power, Bondi personally issued rulings in two cases that restricted asylum nationwide:

  • Matter of S-S-F-M- (domestic violence): Reinstated the notorious 2018 Matter of A-B- decision, instructing immigration judges to "generally" deny asylum to women escaping domestic violence
  • Matter of R-E-R-M- & J-D-R-M- (gang violence/family): Revived the 2019 Matter of L-E-A- ruling, requiring family members fleeing targeted gang violence to prove more than biological ties

Both decisions overturned Biden-era protections (Matter of A-B- III) and returned to first-term Trump policies. The Tahirih Justice Center called the rulings a defiance of "decades of legal precedent, international obligations, and humanitarian standards." The UN Refugee Agency had previously condemned the same policies.

Additionally, the BIA under Bondi's direction barred most immigrants from winning release on bond and allowed judges to "pretermit" (summarily dismiss) asylum claims deemed frivolous -- described as a "game changer" that effectively creates summary judgment in immigration courts.

Sources: Washington Post, Washington Times, Tahirih Justice Center, Jezebel, CIS, NIJC. Confidence: CONFIRMED.

6. Angola Prison: "An Example for the Rest of This Country" (September 3, 2025)

Pam Bondi, September 3, 2025

"Louisiana, you're going to be an example for the rest of this country."

Bondi toured the Louisiana State Penitentiary (Angola) alongside DHS Secretary Noem and Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry for the announcement of "Camp 57" (also called "Louisiana Lockup"), a new ICE detention facility inside the prison built on a former slave plantation.

She called it a "historic agreement" between the state and federal government.

Two weeks after the opening, detainees staged a hunger strike protesting lack of medical care, prescription medication, toilet paper, hygiene products, and clean water. The ACLU later sued alleging a Honduran man was being held illegally at the facility -- he was under a deportation protection order and had already served his criminal sentence.

Sources: PBS, WWNO, Louisiana Illuminator, ACLU of Louisiana, Axios, The Advocate. Confidence: CONFIRMED.

7. ICE-Tracking App Censorship (June-December 2025)

After CNN featured the ICEBlock app -- a "Waze for ICE sightings" -- Bondi told Fox News that the developer Joshua Aaron should "watch out" and that the DOJ was "looking at him." Bondi then:

  • Demanded Apple remove ICEBlock from the App Store (October 2025)
  • Apple complied; Google followed by removing similar apps
  • Meta removed a Facebook group that reported ICE activity in Chicago at DOJ's request
  • Noem stated DHS was working with DOJ on potential criminal prosecution of CNN for reporting on the app

Aaron sued Bondi and other officials in December 2025 for First Amendment violations, calling it "the first known instance of Apple removing U.S.-based apps in response to U.S. government demands." A second lawsuit by others named both Bondi and Noem for "strong-arming" tech platforms.

Rep. Raskin asked: "Why is the Department of Justice violating the First Amendment by coercing big tech to block access to lawful apps that the American people use to record, report, and monitor the actions of our own government officers?"

Sources: NPR, CNN, Axios, Slate, NBC, Fox Business, The Daily Beast, House Judiciary Committee Democrats. Confidence: CONFIRMED.

8. Detention Without Bond: The 5th Circuit Victory (February 2026)

The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the Trump administration's policy of mandatory detention without bond for people arrested in immigration operations -- the first appeals court to do so after hundreds of lower-court judges had ruled the policy unlawful.

Bondi celebrated: "Tonight our @TheJusticeDept attorneys secured yet another crucial legal victory in support of @POTUS Trump's immigration agenda. The Fifth Circuit just held illegal aliens can rightfully be detained without bond -- a significant blow against activist judges."

Sources: Deseret News, NBC News, ABC News. Confidence: CONFIRMED.

Prosecution of Protesters

The Cities Church Arrests (January-February 2026)

On January 18, 2026, approximately 30-40 protesters entered Cities Church in St. Paul during a Sunday service. The church's pastor, David Easterwood, also serves as a local ICE field office director. Protesters chanted "ICE out" and demanded justice for Renee Good, killed by an ICE agent eleven days earlier.

Bondi personally directed a federal prosecution using two statutes:

18 USC 241 -- Conspiracy Against Rights (the Ku Klux Klan Act)

Originally enacted as the Civil Rights Act of 1871 during Reconstruction to protect Black Americans from white supremacist violence, this statute makes it a federal crime for "two or more persons [to] conspire to injure, oppress, threaten, or intimidate any person... in the free exercise or enjoyment of any right or privilege secured to him by the Constitution." Maximum penalty: 10 years in prison.

Bondi's DOJ argued that protesting inside a church where an ICE official preaches constitutes a conspiracy to deprive worshippers of their First Amendment right to religious freedom.

18 USC 248 -- FACE Act (Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances)

Originally passed in 1994 to protect abortion clinic access, this statute was wielded against anti-ICE protesters by arguing they interfered with religious worship. Republicans had previously accused Biden's DOJ of weaponizing the FACE Act against anti-abortion protesters.

People Charged

Name Role Charges Status
Nekima Levy Armstrong Civil rights attorney, former NAACP Minneapolis president 18 USC 241, 18 USC 248 Released; judge found insufficient evidence for detention
Chauntyll Louisa Allen St. Paul school board member 18 USC 241, 18 USC 248 Arrested
William Kelly Protester 18 USC 241 Arrested
Don Lemon Journalist (former CNN anchor) 18 USC 241, 18 USC 248 Arrested after initial magistrate judge refused to sign complaint
Trahern Jeen Crews Protester 18 USC 241, 18 USC 248 Arrested
Georgia Fort Independent journalist 18 USC 241, 18 USC 248 Arrested
Jamael Lydell Lundy Protester 18 USC 241, 18 USC 248 Arrested
2 additional individuals Protesters 18 USC 241, 18 USC 248 Indicted by grand jury

As of early February 2026, nine people were named in a grand jury indictment.

Bondi's Personal Role

Bondi personally announced the arrests, bragged about them on social media, and directed FBI and ICE to make arrests. When one protester dared her to arrest him, Bondi publicly bragged about following through. The White House posted an altered photo of one protester's arrest to make it look like she was crying.

Critical Context

The DOJ declined to open a civil rights investigation into the killing of Renee Good -- the event these people were protesting -- but swiftly launched federal felony prosecutions against those who protested her killing. The cases were handled by Washington, DC-based DOJ civil rights attorneys, not the local U.S. Attorney's Office (which was in disarray from mass resignations over the same issue).

Attorney Jordan Kushner, representing Levy Armstrong, called it "not a legitimate prosecution" and stated: "Nonviolent protest is not a federal felony."

Sources: AP/ABC News, PBS, Newsweek, Washington Post, Common Dreams, KSTP, KARE11, The Mirror, Free Speech Center at MTSU, Christian Post. Confidence: CONFIRMED.

Charging a Congresswoman (May 2025)

DOJ charged Rep. LaToya McIver after she conducted a Congressional oversight visit to Delaney Hall, an ICE detention facility in Newark managed by GEO Group. The facility is operated by Bondi's former lobbying client. Interim U.S. Attorney Alina Habba (Trump's former personal lawyer) brought the charges after initially charging Newark Mayor Ras Baraka with trespassing -- charges a federal judge excoriated as baseless before they were dropped.

Rep. Raskin wrote to Bondi raising concerns that the prosecution violated long-standing DOJ policies against politically motivated abuse of prosecutorial power.

Sources: House Judiciary Committee Democrats, NPR. Confidence: HIGH.

Failure to Investigate Deaths

The Refusal Pattern

Under Bondi's DOJ, not a single federal agent has been charged with a civil rights violation for any killing, shooting, or beating during immigration enforcement operations. This is not an oversight -- it is policy. See the federal agent conduct pattern analysis for the full picture.

Renee Good (Killed January 7, 2026)

  • What happened: ICE Agent Jonathan Ross shot and killed Renee Good, a 37-year-old mother of three, in her vehicle in Minneapolis
  • FBI opened investigation: An FBI supervisor in Minneapolis opened a civil rights investigation into the killing
  • Bondi shut it down: Rep. Raskin stated at the February 11, 2026 hearing that "when the FBI opened a criminal investigation into the brutal killing of Renee Good by Trump's masked paramilitary ICE agents, Bondi shut it down"
  • Deputy AG Blanche announced: "We investigate when it's appropriate to investigate and that is not the case here" and "There is currently no basis for a criminal civil rights investigation"
  • Instead, DOJ investigated the victim's widow: Prosecutors were directed to investigate Good's grieving wife and "other possible co-conspirators" and to treat the case as an assault on a federal officer
  • FBI supervisor who opened the investigation resigned
  • The refusal was described as defying "longstanding, bipartisan law enforcement norms"

Alex Pretti (Killed January 24, 2026)

  • What happened: CBP agents shot 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti approximately ten times while he was pinned to the ground by multiple agents in Minneapolis
  • DOJ refused to investigate: The New Republic reported that DOJ would not properly investigate Pretti's killing
  • DOJ blocked state investigation: When Minnesota's Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) arrived to investigate, federal authorities ordered them to leave, denying access to the crime scene and evidence
  • State sued for access: Minnesota sued the federal government; a judge ordered DHS not to destroy or alter evidence
  • DOJ demanded Minnesota's voter data in a letter that state officials called "ransom" -- tying potential de-escalation of immigration enforcement to handing over voter registration lists, Medicaid records, and food assistance data

Marimar Martinez (Shot October 4, 2025)

  • What happened: CBP Agent Charles Exum shot U.S. citizen Marimar Martinez five times during Operation Midway Blitz in Chicago
  • DOJ initially charged Martinez with assault on a federal officer
  • Charges dropped weeks later after body camera footage and text messages surfaced showing Exum bragging about the shooting and being praised by supervisor Gregory Bovino
  • No civil rights investigation opened against Exum
  • DHS continued to call Martinez a "domestic terrorist" even after charges were dropped

Detention Deaths (31-32 in 2025)

Deadliest Year Since 2004

2025 saw at least 32 deaths in ICE custody -- nearly triple 2024's 11 deaths. DOJ has not opened civil rights investigations into any of them.

2025 was the deadliest year for ICE detainees since 2004, with at least 32 deaths in custody -- nearly triple 2024's 11 deaths. DOJ has not opened civil rights investigations into any of these deaths, including:

  • Geraldo Lunas Campos: 55-year-old Cuban migrant at Fort Bliss; medical examiner ruled cause of death asphyxiation -- homicide; witnesses said guards choked him to death; DHS attempted to deport the witnesses
  • Multiple Fort Bliss deaths: Three people died at the tent facility within 44 days

300+ Former Federal Prosecutors Demand Action

On February 4, 2026, over 300 former federal prosecutors -- from both Republican and Democratic administrations -- wrote to Bondi urging her to follow "longstanding, bipartisan law enforcement norms" by sharing evidence with local investigators and allowing state authorities to investigate the Minneapolis killings.

Bondi's response at the February 11, 2026 hearing: "What I will say is we are looking at everything to shed light on what happened that day, and it is an ongoing and active investigation. Both of those cases, and I assure you, they will be investigated."

This claim is contradicted by Deputy AG Blanche's earlier public statement that there was "no basis" for investigation, and by the firing of prosecutors who wanted to conduct one.

Sources: Newsweek, House Judiciary Committee Democrats, NPR, CBS News, New Republic, Fox News, PBS. Confidence: HIGH.

The Minnesota Prosecutor Purge

Bondi on Fox News (Hannity), January 2026

"I fired them all!"

The refusal to investigate killings -- combined with the order to instead investigate victims and protesters -- triggered an unprecedented wave of resignations and firings at the Minnesota U.S. Attorney's Office:

  • Joseph Thompson (No. 2 official) and multiple senior prosecutors gave notice they would resign rather than prosecute Good's widow
  • Bondi fired them before their notice period expired, announcing on Fox News: "I fired them all!"
  • She accused the prosecutors of joining "the deep state" and being members of "the Resistance," saying: "Six prosecutors suddenly decided they don't like ICE! One did a photoshoot with the NYT, while ICE risked their lives!"
  • Total departures: At least 14 prosecutors resigned or were fired; the office was left with fewer than 20 attorneys -- "woefully understaffed"
  • The FBI supervisor who opened the civil rights investigation into Good's killing also resigned
  • DOJ scrambled to bring 10 replacement attorneys from Washington, DC, and the Judge Advocate General's Corps
  • At least four leaders of the DOJ Civil Rights Division's criminal section also left

Governor Walz called Thompson "a principled public servant" and said the firings were "the latest sign that President Trump is pushing nonpartisan career professionals out of the Department of Justice and replacing them with his sycophants."

Sources: Fox News, The Daily Beast, The Mirror, New Republic, NPR, CBS News, BizPac Review. Confidence: CONFIRMED.

Defense of Deportation Policies

Alien Enemies Act: Defying Court Orders

Bondi's DOJ has mounted the most aggressive legal defense of executive deportation power in modern history:

  • Defied Judge Boasberg's TRO: Deportation flights continued to El Salvador despite a court order to stop them; DOJ argued the planes were over international waters
  • Invoked "state secrets" privilege to block Judge Boasberg from viewing information about the flights -- breaking with past practice for the privilege, which is typically reserved for genuine national security matters
  • Argued judges have "no right" to block deportation flights: Bondi stated, "This judge has no right to ask those questions. You have one unelected federal judge trying to control foreign policies."
  • Fought contempt proceedings: A 2-1 decision by Trump-appointed judges on the D.C. Circuit vacated Boasberg's contempt proceedings; Bondi celebrated it as "failed judicial overreach at its worst"
  • A DOJ whistleblower disclosed that DOJ officials conspired to violate the D.V.D. v. DHS temporary restraining order on third-country deportations, describing "efforts to feign ambiguity in an unambiguous order, failing to disseminate the fact and terms of the injunction, and purposefully failing to respond to Plaintiffs' inquiries"

Third-Country Deportations

Bondi's DOJ has defended the practice of deporting people to countries they are not from:

  • South Sudan, Eswatini, Rwanda, Ghana, and at least 11 confirmed countries
  • The State Department considers South Sudan too dangerous for almost all Americans and warns travelers to plan for hostage situations
  • UN experts called the practice incompatible with international human rights law
  • Human Rights Watch found deportees were exposed to "arbitrary detention, ill-treatment, and refoulement"

Detention Without Bond

DOJ successfully argued before the 5th Circuit that immigrants arrested in enforcement operations can be held in mandatory detention without bond -- a position rejected by hundreds of lower-court judges before the appellate ruling.

Minnesota as Leverage

Bondi's January 2026 letter to Governor Walz combined three seemingly unrelated demands:

  1. End sanctuary policies and support ICE officers
  2. Provide voter registration lists to DOJ's Civil Rights Division
  3. Hand over Medicaid and food assistance program records

Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon called it "deeply disturbing" and "an apparent ransom to pay for our state's peace and security." Federal Judge Kate Menendez asked DOJ directly: "Is the executive trying to achieve a goal through force that it cannot achieve through the courts?"

Sources: Reason, NBC News, CNN, CBS News, The Hill, NPR, The Daily Beast, NOTUS, Supreme Court filings, Human Rights Watch, OHCHR. Confidence: HIGH.

The GEO Group Conflict of Interest

Unrecused Conflict of Interest

Bondi lobbied for GEO Group (2019-2024). GEO Group has earned over $1 billion in ICE contracts in a single year. Bondi removed the career ethics official who might have required recusal and has not recused herself from any immigration detention decision.

The Facts

  • Bondi was a registered lobbyist for the GEO Group at Ballard Partners (2019-2024)
  • GEO Group is the largest private prison contractor in the United States, with ~100 facilities, ~79,000 beds, and ~18,000 employees
  • GEO Group's largest revenue source is ICE contracts
  • Under the Trump administration, GEO Group has earned over $1 billion in ICE contract revenue in a single year
  • GEO Group has "long had a reputation for fostering abusive and dangerous conditions for inmates, including children"

The Recusal That Never Happened

During confirmation, when asked if she would recuse herself from matters involving GEO Group, Bondi said she would "consult with the career ethics officials within the Department of Justice and make the appropriate decision."

Within weeks, Acting Deputy AG Emil Bove removed the department's senior career ethics official and replaced him with two political appointees with limited experience. Senate Democrats argued this "eliminated a critical safeguard against corruption within the Department" and that Bondi's "sworn testimony misled Congress and the American people."

Senator Durbin demanded Bondi "recuse yourself from any and all DOJ activities, communications, or policy decisions related to immigration detention, enforcement, and contracting that could directly or indirectly benefit the GEO Group or impact its federal contracts."

Bondi did not recuse herself. She is actively coordinating the immigration enforcement infrastructure from which GEO Group profits. The Delaney Hall detention facility where Rep. McIver was charged is operated by GEO Group.

During her confirmation, Bondi listed only two potential conflicts: her work for America First Policy Institute and her brother's legal practice. She did not list GEO Group, Qatar, or other lobbying clients.

Sources: Senate Judiciary Committee, Durbin press releases, Public Citizen, PBS, NIJC. Confidence: HIGH.

Gutting the Civil Rights Division

75% of Attorneys Gone

An open letter signed by 200+ former Civil Rights Division employees stated the division has been "destroyed" and its mission "turned upside down." The Public Integrity Section has been hollowed out by resignations.

The Numbers

An open letter signed by over 200 former Civil Rights Division employees (December 2025) stated:

"After witnessing this Administration destroy much of our work, we made the heartbreaking decision to leave -- along with hundreds of colleagues, including about 75 percent of attorneys."

The former employees alleged that under Bondi and Assistant AG Harmeet Dhillon:

  • The division's mission of defending civil rights has been "turned upside down"
  • Officials "demanded that we find facts to fit the Administration's predetermined outcomes" rather than following evidence
  • The division dropped a voting rights lawsuit against Georgia
  • The division dismissed a suit concerning sexual abuse of unaccompanied migrant children
  • The division backtracked on reports documenting police department abuses nationwide
  • The Public Integrity Section (which prosecutes public corruption) has been "hollowed out" by resignations

Broader DOJ Workforce Collapse

Justice Connection, a network of DOJ alumni, estimates:

  • 230+ lawyers, agents, and employees fired -- apparently for their work on assigned cases, past criticism of Trump, or no stated reason
  • 6,400+ employees have left a department of approximately 108,000
  • The section that prosecutes public corruption has been gutted
  • Multiple U.S. Attorney's offices hit by mass resignations

DOJ claims 3,400+ career attorneys have been hired since Trump took office, but critics note these replacements lack the institutional knowledge and independence of those who left.

Sources: Al Jazeera, NPR, ABC News, Senate Judiciary Committee, MSNBC. Confidence: HIGH.

Notable Statements

On the Minneapolis Killings

"There is currently no basis for a criminal civil rights investigation."
-- Deputy AG Todd Blanche, announcing DOJ would not investigate Good's killing (January 2026)

"I fired them all!"
-- Bondi on Fox News (Hannity), after Minnesota prosecutors resigned over the order to investigate Good's widow rather than her killer (January 2026)

"Six prosecutors suddenly decided they don't like ICE!"
-- Bondi on Fox News (Hannity), characterizing prosecutors who resigned in protest (January 2026)

"What I will say is we are looking at everything to shed light on what happened that day, and it is an ongoing and active investigation. Both of those cases, and I assure you, they will be investigated."
-- Bondi at House Judiciary Committee hearing, contradicting Blanche's earlier statement (February 11, 2026)

On the Church Protesters

"Today, HSI and the U.S. Department of Justice arrested Kyle Wagner, a self-identified Antifa domestic terrorist in Minneapolis who conspired to threaten, dox, and kill our brave ICE officers."
-- Statement on Wagner arrest; Wagner was charged with cyberstalking, not terrorism (February 5, 2026, with DHS Secretary Noem)

On Deportation Flights and Courts

"This judge has no right to ask those questions. You have one unelected federal judge trying to control foreign policies, trying to control the Alien Enemies Act, which they have no business presiding over."
-- On Judge Boasberg's attempt to halt CECOT deportation flights (March 2025)

"We will absolutely continue to carry out deportation flights."
-- After Judge Boasberg's court order to stop the flights (March 2025)

"Tonight our @TheJusticeDept attorneys secured yet another crucial legal victory in support of @POTUS Trump's immigration agenda. The Fifth Circuit just held illegal aliens can rightfully be detained without bond -- a significant blow against activist judges."
-- On the 5th Circuit bond ruling (February 2026)

"Yet another rogue district court judge has been rebuked by the Supreme Court thanks to the tireless work of dedicated DOJ attorneys."
-- After Supreme Court allowed third-country deportations to South Sudan to proceed (July 2025)

On Sanctuary Jurisdictions

"Any sanctuary jurisdiction that continues to put illegal aliens ahead of American citizens can either come to the table or see us in court."
-- Announcing the 32-jurisdiction sanctuary crackdown (August 2025)

"The State of Minnesota has refused to enforce the law, and the consequences are heartbreaking."
-- Letter to Governor Walz after Alex Pretti's killing (January 2026)

"Whether state and local politicians stand in the way or not, we will work every day to protect Americans and make Minnesota Safe Again."
-- Same letter to Governor Walz (January 2026)

On Angola Prison

"Louisiana, you're going to be an example for the rest of this country."
-- At the Angola prison opening announcement (September 3, 2025)

On ICE-Tracking Apps

"They better look out because you cannot dox... law enforcement's information is private."
-- On ICEBlock app developer and users (2025)

On Abrego Garcia

"It's up to El Salvador."
-- In the Oval Office with Trump and Bukele, on returning a man the government admitted was wrongfully deported (2025)

Confirmation Pledge (Broken)

"Every case will be prosecuted based on the facts and the law that is applied in good faith -- period. Politics have got to be taken out of the system."
-- Confirmation hearing testimony (January 15, 2025)

Accountability Assessment

What Pam Bondi Is Responsible For

As Attorney General, Bondi bears direct responsibility for:

  1. Shielding federal agents from accountability for killings. She personally shut down the FBI's civil rights investigation into Renee Good's killing. She refused to investigate Alex Pretti's killing. She blocked state investigators from accessing crime scenes. She fired prosecutors who objected. Not a single federal agent has been charged with a civil rights violation for any killing, shooting, or beating during immigration enforcement operations under her DOJ. This is not mere negligence -- it is the active construction of impunity.

  2. Weaponizing the Ku Klux Klan Act against civil rights activists. She directed the prosecution of people who protested the killing of Renee Good at a church pastored by an ICE official, using a Reconstruction-era statute designed to protect Black Americans from white supremacist violence. She charged civil rights attorney Nekima Levy Armstrong, school board member Chauntyll Allen, journalist Don Lemon, and six others with federal felonies carrying up to 10 years in prison -- for nonviolent protest.

  3. Defying the federal judiciary. She authorized deportation flights in defiance of court orders, invoked "state secrets" privilege to hide deportation information from judges, publicly stated that judges have "no right" to block deportation flights, and celebrated when Trump-appointed judges shielded the administration from contempt proceedings. A DOJ whistleblower disclosed that officials conspired to violate court orders.

  4. Destroying the Civil Rights Division. Under her leadership, the division lost approximately 75% of its attorneys. The Public Integrity Section was hollowed out. Over 200 former employees signed a letter saying the division had been "destroyed." This was not incidental -- it was the systematic dismantling of the institution responsible for holding federal agents accountable.

  5. Profiting her former client. GEO Group, which she lobbied for, has earned over $1 billion in ICE contracts in a single year. She removed the career ethics official who might have required her recusal. She has not recused herself from any immigration detention decision. She charged a congresswoman who visited a GEO Group facility.

  6. Eliminating asylum protections. She personally issued rulings restricting asylum for domestic violence survivors and families fleeing gang violence, overturning Biden-era protections and returning to policies condemned by the UN Refugee Agency.

  7. Authorizing the legal architecture of mass detention and deportation without due process. The Alien Enemies Act guidance, the mandatory detention without bond policy, the third-country deportation defense, and the "pretermission" of asylum claims collectively create a system in which people can be arrested without warrants, detained without bond, denied asylum hearings, and deported to countries they've never been to -- all with the legal blessing of the Department of Justice.

Consequences Faced

  • Questioned at House Judiciary Committee hearing (February 11, 2026)
  • Named as defendant in multiple federal lawsuits (ICEBlock, D.V.D. v. DHS, ACLU suits)
  • Demands for recusal from Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats
  • Over 300 former prosecutors publicly rebuked her
  • Trump reportedly complained she is "weak and an ineffective enforcer"

Consequences NOT Faced

  • Not fired by Trump
  • No personal criminal charges
  • No ethics investigation (career ethics official was removed)
  • No recusal from GEO Group matters
  • No accountability for firing Erez Reuveni (the lawyer who told the truth about Abrego Garcia)
  • No accountability for shutting down the FBI investigation into Good's killing
  • No accountability for the gutting of the Civil Rights Division
  • No agent under DOJ jurisdiction charged for any killing or beating

Assessment

As of February 12, 2026, Pam Bondi has converted the Department of Justice from the institution that enforces civil rights into the institution that suppresses them. She shields agents who kill. She prosecutes people who protest those killings. She punishes lawyers who tell the truth in court. She guts the division designed to prevent exactly this kind of abuse. She defies judges who try to stop it. And she does all of this while her former lobbying client earns over a billion dollars a year from the system she is building.

The Ku Klux Klan Act was written to protect people from organized conspiracies to deprive them of their constitutional rights. Bondi is using it to prosecute people who protested the killing of a mother of three by a masked federal agent. The irony is not lost. The cruelty is the point.

This is not the failure of an institution. This is the capture of one.

Sources

Official Records and Government Documents

  1. DOJ.gov -- Attorney General biography -- https://www.justice.gov/ag/staff-profile/meet-attorney-general
  2. Congress.gov -- Bondi nomination record -- https://www.congress.gov/nomination/119th-congress/11/2
  3. Senate.gov -- Roll call vote 54-46 -- https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_votes/vote1191/vote_119_1_00033.htm
  4. Senate Judiciary Committee -- Bondi confirmation hearing -- https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/press/rep/releases/grassley-speaks-ahead-of-bondis-confirmation-im-convinced-that-ms-bondi-is-the-right-choice
  5. House Judiciary Committee Democrats -- Raskin letter on Good/Pretti investigations -- https://democrats-judiciary.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/democrats-judiciary.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/2026-01-26-raskin-et-al-to-bondi-doj-re-good-and-pretti-investigations_0.pdf
  6. House Judiciary Committee Democrats -- Raskin letter on ICE apps -- https://democrats-judiciary.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/democrats-judiciary.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/2026-02-05-raskin-to-bondi-doj-re-ice-apps.pdf
  7. House Judiciary Committee Democrats -- Raskin letter on McIver charges -- https://democrats-judiciary.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/democrats-judiciary.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/2025-06-03.raskin-to-bondi-doj-re-mciver-charges.pdf
  8. Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats -- Durbin recusal demand -- https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/press/dem/releases/durbin-demands-attorney-general-bondi-recuse-herself-from-any-work-benefitting-prison-company-due-to-conflicts-of-interest
  9. Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats -- Conflict of interest summary -- https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/press/dem/releases/pam-bondis-extensive-lobbying-for-wealthy-special-interests-and-foreign-government-poses-serious-conflict-of-interest
  10. Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats -- GEO Group letter -- https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/2025-05-02%20Letter%20to%20AG%20Bondi%20re.%20GEO.pdf
  11. Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats -- Durbin on weaponization -- https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/press/dem/releases/durbin-calls-out-weaponization-of-the-justice-department-under-ag-bondis-leadership-one-year-since-her-confirmation
  12. Supreme Court -- Noem v. Abrego Garcia opinion -- https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24pdf/24a949_lkhn.pdf
  13. Newsweek -- 300+ former prosecutors letter (full text) -- https://assets.newsweek.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Former-DOJ-MN-Sign-On-Letter-02.04.26.pdf

News Coverage -- Tier 1/2 Sources

  1. NPR -- Bondi confirmed as AG -- https://www.npr.org/2025/02/04/nx-s1-5287011/pam-bondi-attorney-general-confirmation
  2. NPR -- Day one directives -- https://www.npr.org/2025/02/05/g-s1-46698/attorney-general-memos-weaponization-trump
  3. NPR -- How Bondi reshaped DOJ -- https://www.npr.org/2026/02/10/nx-s1-5708854/how-pam-bondi-has-reshaped-the-justice-department
  4. NPR -- Bondi oversight hearing -- https://www.npr.org/2026/02/11/nx-s1-5707280/pam-bondi-oversight-hearing-department-of-justice
  5. NPR -- Minnesota rebuffs data demands -- https://www.npr.org/2026/01/26/nx-s1-5688964/minnesota-data-bondi-letter
  6. NPR -- Alien Enemies Act deportations violated due process -- https://www.npr.org/2025/12/22/nx-s1-5652187/alien-enemies-act-deportations-case
  7. NPR -- ICEBlock lawsuit -- https://www.npr.org/2025/12/08/nx-s1-5631826/iceblock-app-lawsuit-trump-bondi
  8. PBS -- Bondi House Judiciary hearing -- https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/watch-live-pam-bondi-appears-at-house-judiciary-committee-hearing-on-justice-department-oversight
  9. PBS -- Noem, Bondi discuss Angola detention -- https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/watch-noem-bondi-discuss-plans-for-ice-detention-facility-in-notorious-louisiana-prison
  10. PBS -- Don Lemon charged -- https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/trump-administration-charges-don-lemon-with-federal-civil-rights-crimes-related-to-anti-ice-church-protest
  11. PBS -- Supreme Court clears Alien Enemies Act deportations -- https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/supreme-court-clears-way-for-deportations-under-alien-enemies-act
  12. CNN -- Bondi confirmed -- https://www.cnn.com/2025/02/04/politics/pam-bondi-confirmed-attorney-general/index.html
  13. CNN -- Bondi voter rolls Minnesota -- https://edition.cnn.com/2026/01/27/politics/pam-bondi-voter-rolls-minnesota-ice
  14. CNN -- State secrets deportation flights -- https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/24/politics/deportation-flights-trump-administration-state-secrets-privilege/index.html
  15. CNN -- Apple removes ICE tracking apps -- https://www.cnn.com/2025/10/03/tech/iceblock-apple-removed-trump
  16. Washington Post -- Bondi asylum rulings -- https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/09/03/bondi-immigration-families-women-asylum/
  17. Washington Post -- Church protest arrests -- https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/01/22/minnesota-church-protesters-justice-department-arrests/

Investigative Journalism and Analysis

  1. Reason -- Bondi AEA memo: warrantless searches, no judicial review -- https://reason.com/2025/04/25/justice-department-memo-claims-alien-enemies-act-allows-warrantless-home-searches-and-no-judicial-review/
  2. Slate -- ICEBlock lawsuit -- https://slate.com/technology/2025/12/iceblock-app-lawsuit-pam-bondi-trump-joshua-aaron-ice.html
  3. Axios -- ICEBlock lawsuit details -- https://www.axios.com/2025/12/08/iceblock-lawsuit-trump-apple-ban
  4. Common Dreams -- Church protest arrests -- https://www.commondreams.org/news/ice-protests-minnesota
  5. The New Republic -- DOJ won't investigate Pretti -- https://newrepublic.com/post/205765/doj-wont-investigate-alex-pretti-killing-minneapolis
  6. The New Republic -- Minnesota prosecutors quit -- https://newrepublic.com/post/206097/minnesota-prosecutors-quit-en-masse-us-attorney-office-doj
  7. Al Jazeera -- Civil Rights Division "destroyed" -- https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/12/9/former-us-justice-department-staff-says-civil-rights-division-destroyed
  8. ABC News -- Inside a year of firings at DOJ -- https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/inside-year-firings-shaken-trump-justice-department-great-129268595
  9. Newsweek -- 300+ former prosecutors letter -- https://www.newsweek.com/former-federal-prosecutors-letter-pam-bondi-minnesota-ice-shootings-renee-good-alex-pretti-11467369
  10. Public Citizen -- Conflicted Justice report -- https://www.citizen.org/article/conflicted-justice/

Detention and Human Rights

  1. Louisiana Illuminator -- ICE Angola -- https://lailluminator.com/2025/09/03/ice-angola/
  2. WWNO -- Notorious wing of Angola now ICE detention -- https://www.wwno.org/immigration/2025-09-04/a-notorious-wing-of-angola-prison-is-now-a-detention-center-for-ice
  3. ACLU of Louisiana -- Condemns Angola detention -- https://www.redriverradio.org/news/2025-09-09/aclu-of-louisiana-fights-use-of-angola-prison-for-ice-detainee-detention
  4. Human Rights Watch -- Repeal Alien Enemies Act -- https://www.hrw.org/news/2025/05/01/us-repeal-alien-enemies-act
  5. OHCHR -- UN experts alarmed by third-country deportations -- https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2025/07/un-experts-alarmed-resumption-us-deportations-third-countries-warn
  6. Tahirih Justice Center -- AG reinstates harmful asylum decision -- https://www.tahirih.org/news/attorney-general-reinstates-harmful-decision-on-domestic-violence-asylum/
  7. NIJC -- Statement opposing Bondi nomination -- https://immigrantjustice.org/sites/default/files/uploaded-files/no-content-type/2025-01/NIJC-statement-opposing-AG-nomination-Pam-Bondi_Jan2025.pdf
  1. Governor of California -- Ethical obligations reminder to Bondi -- https://www.gov.ca.gov/2025/08/19/governor-newsoms-office-reminds-bondi-of-ethical-obligations-for-u-s-department-of-justice-lawyers/
  2. Dorsey & Whitney -- DOJ focus on immigration enforcement -- https://www.dorsey.com/newsresources/publications/client-alerts/2025/2/doj-focus-on-immigration-enforcement
  3. CLINIC -- What is happening with the Alien Enemies Act -- https://www.cliniclegal.org/resources/removal-proceedings/part-ii-what-happening-alien-enemies-act-kilmar-abrego-garcia-and
  4. Free Speech Center at MTSU -- Bondi announces church protest arrests -- https://firstamendment.mtsu.edu/post/u-s-attorney-general-pam-bondi-announces-2-more-arrests-in-st-paul-church-protest/
  5. Deseret News -- 5th Circuit backs detention without bond -- https://www.deseret.com/politics/2026/02/09/trump-administration-wins-immigration-ruling-in-federal-court-detain-without-bond/

Background

  1. Wikipedia -- Pam Bondi -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pam_Bondi
  2. Britannica -- Pam Bondi -- https://www.britannica.com/biography/Pam-Bondi
  3. Ballotpedia -- Pam Bondi -- https://ballotpedia.org/Pam_Bondi
  4. Wikipedia -- Deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deportation_of_Kilmar_Abrego_Garcia
  5. Wikipedia -- Weaponization Working Group -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weaponization_Working_Group

This dossier is a living document. It will be updated as new evidence emerges.

Published by Mortui Vivos Docent Intelligence Project
Methodology: Bellingcat-standard OSINT -- public sources only
Three-source minimum for all major claims

Every. Human. Matters.
Every. Claim. Gets. Verified.