February 19, 2026
Order in the meme court!
Minnesota judge holds federal attorney in civil contempt
Judge slaps $500/day fine; some cheer, others say the military lawyer was 'voluntold'
TLDR: A Minnesota judge found a federal attorney in civil contempt and set a $500-per-day fine until a released immigrant’s ID is returned. Commenters are split between cheering tough enforcement of court orders and arguing the military lawyer was “voluntold” into a broken system—raising bigger questions about chaos versus accountability.
A Minnesota courtroom just lit up the internet: Judge Laura Provinzino held federal attorney Matthew Isihara in civil contempt for ignoring orders to return a released immigrant’s ID and to free him in Minnesota, not Texas. Starting Friday, it’s $500 a day until the documents show up. It’s reportedly the first time a federal lawyer has been sanctioned in Trump’s second term—and comment sections went nuclear. The loudest chorus? The law-and-order crowd cheering the judge’s “no more hand-holding” stance and quoting her burn that staffing problems don’t excuse breaking court orders. “Amen,” one user shouted, as others called it a long-overdue reality check for an immigration crackdown gone off the rails.
But the sympathy brigade arrived fast: commenters pointed out Isihara is a military lawyer flown in for Operation Metro Surge and can’t just quit—“voluntold,” stuck in a no-win pileup of cases. That sparked a bigger fight: was the Texas release a deliberate sidestep or just bureaucratic chaos? Meanwhile, the meme machine went wild: $500 a day became “the parking meter from hell,” Operation Metro Surge turned into “Operation Missing Wallet,” and the judge’s “no babysitting” vibe got GIF’d into oblivion. Underneath the jokes is a very real split: enforce the rules with fines, or admit the system’s jammed and fix the jam. Either way, judges in the Twin Cities look done with excuses—and the internet’s keeping score.
Key Points
- •US District Judge Laura Provinzino held federal attorney Matthew Isihara in civil contempt for failing to follow a court order in an immigration case.
- •The judge imposed a $500-per-day fine starting Friday until the immigrant’s identification documents are returned to his attorney.
- •The case involves a Mexican national ordered released by February 13 in Minnesota with all property returned; he was instead released in Texas without his ID documents.
- •The ruling appears to be the first court-ordered sanction against a federal attorney during President Donald Trump’s second term.
- •Provinzino rejected Isihara’s explanation citing high caseloads from Operation Metro Surge, stating staffing issues do not excuse disobedience of court orders.