The Illegal News with Sarah Longwell S2 Ep143: Secret ICE Memo Says They Can Enter Homes Without Warrants (w/ Elliot Williams)
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Jan 28, 2026 Elliot Williams, CNN legal analyst and former DOJ and ICE attorney, weighs in on fights between ICE, the DOJ, and the courts. He discusses a judge threatening contempt after ICE ignored orders. He explains a secret DHS memo saying ICE can enter homes without judicial warrants and the collision with Fourth Amendment norms. He also covers procedural oddities around denied arrest warrants tied to a church protest.
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Episode notes
Judicial Frustration Over ICE Noncompliance
- Judges see ICE's repeated failures to follow orders as willful disrespect, not mere incompetence.
- Elliot Williams warns that repeated noncompliance erodes judicial trust and prompts contempt actions.
DOJ Skips Courtroom Chain Of Command
- DOJ secretly appealed magistrate warrant denials to the appeals court, bypassing the district chief judge.
- Judge Schiltz publicly rebuked that procedural overreach and consulted Eighth Circuit colleagues.
Use The Grand Jury After Warrant Denial
- When a magistrate denies a warrant, prosecutors should fix the warrant or present the case to a grand jury.
- Elliot Williams notes going to a grand jury is the common, more fulsome path to secure authorizations.
