A federal judge in New Jersey warned he would order federal prosecutors to answer questions under oath if they continued to seek arrests and detentions under a portion of the federal code already rejected in hundreds of cases.
In a brief opinion issued Thursday that ordered the release of an El Salvadorian immigrant detained by federal authorities, U.S. District Judge Zahid Quraishi said federal authorities’ continued reliance on the statute bespeaks intentional disregard for the law and courts.
Lawyers are most definitely not under oath in the courtroom. They are under scrutiny of the bar association if they get way out of line, but lawyers can pretty much say whatever they want. It’s up to the opposing counsel to object and the judge to keep shit from going off the rails.