Florida Republican Congressman Greg Steube has filed an article of impeachment against Senior U.S. District Judge John E. Steele of the Middle District of Florida. The articles of impeachment, designated House Resolution 1431, accuse Judge Steele of committing "high crimes and misdemeanors" by ordering the release of Maikel Guerra Morales, a convicted Cuban plane hijacker, from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody.
Morales, who is an undocumented immigrant from Cuba, was ordered released by Judge Steele on July 8. The judge cited a Supreme Court ruling that governs the detention of foreign nationals whose removal from the U.S. cannot be effectuated. "The Government cannot lock individuals in a cell indefinitely as a workaround for a stalled deportation process," Steele wrote in his order.
Congressman Steube, in a statement, criticized the decision, calling it "activist judicial overreach." He asserted that "Judge Steele had every legal justification to keep a convicted plane hijacker off our streets, and he chose to let him go instead."
According to Department of Homeland Security records, Morales was involved in the hijacking of a Cuban commuter airplane in 2003. He, along with several others, assaulted a flight crew and forced the pilot to fly to Monroe County, Florida. Upon landing at Key West International Airport, he was arrested by the U.S. Marshals Service and charged with aircraft piracy and conspiracy to interfere with a flight crew. He was subsequently convicted and sentenced to 22 years in prison.
Judge Steele, appointed by President Bill Clinton, presided over the case that led to Morales' release despite his felony conviction. The impeachment articles filed by Steube will now move through the House of Representatives.