Judge Taps Former U.S. Attorney to Probe Ethics in Trump Golf Course Case

A federal judge in Washington said on Saturday she intends to appoint a former top federal prosecutor to investigate whether lawyers for the Trump administration committed ethical violations while defending the president’s plan to overhaul a historic public golf course in the capital.

U.S. District Judge Ana C. Reyes said she plans to name Jessie K. Liu, who served as U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia from 2017 to 2020, as a special master in the case over the East Potomac Golf Links. The judge issued the notice one week after a hearing at which she ordered an ethics inquiry and raised concerns that government lawyers had misrepresented the administration’s plans for the course.

No finding of misconduct has been made. The inquiry itself is the action now on the table, and the parties have until Friday, 13 November, to file written objections to Liu’s proposed appointment.

A special master for the golf course fight

In an order issued on Saturday, 7 November, Reyes wrote: “The Court gives Notice of its intent to appoint former United States Attorney Jessie K. Liu as the Special Master.”

The proposed inquiry would examine “whether Department of Justice or Department of the Interior counsel have committed ethical violations in this matter through October 31, 2026”, according to the order, and it would be conducted at the government’s cost.

Liu previously served as an assistant U.S. attorney in the same Washington office she later led. Her appointment is not yet final. Reyes said she would enter a detailed order appointing Liu if she proceeds, and noted that any response from the government would be “without prejudice to its argument, if any, that the court should not conduct an ethics inquiry”.

A further court hearing is scheduled for Friday, 13 November.

What the judge says went wrong

The dispute sharpened at a hearing on 30 October, when Reyes questioned whether officials had misled her about the plans and timing for the renovation, and said she was sceptical of the administration’s claim that tree removals at the site were unrelated to the project.

The judge had already issued a temporary order blocking the work. She told the court she was concerned that government attorneys had misrepresented the administration’s intention to press ahead with the renovation despite that order.

According to court reporting, crews removed about 529 trees from the golf course, which sits in East Potomac Park on national parkland along the edge of the capital. The administration has since filed notice that it intends to close the course on 15 November so the renovation can move ahead.

Reyes’ existing injunction remains in place. It bars further tree removals and requires the government to give 10 business days’ written notice before making any irreversible changes to the course.

The lawsuit and the renovation plan

The lawsuit was filed in February by the DC Preservation League and two golfers. It asserts that the planned reconstruction of East Potomac Park, including the golf course, violates environmental laws and a congressional preservation act.

The administration’s plan would close the public course for a renovation expected to last about 15 months. The National Park Service is to submit a design by the architect Tom Fazio for a championship-style course suitable for professional tournaments to the National Capital Planning Commission.

The plaintiffs have asked Reyes to block the closure temporarily, and that request is also due to be considered at the hearing on 13 November.

The case has become one of the more unusual legal fights of the administration’s second term: a dispute over a municipal golf course that now involves the Justice Department’s third-ranking official, Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward, who was questioned by the judge at the October hearing.

What happens next

The immediate question is whether Liu takes up the role. If she does, she will review the conduct of officials from the Interior Department and the National Park Service, as well as lawyers representing the government through the Justice Department, in the months leading up to the end of October.

The inquiry could lead to sanctions, contempt referrals or faster appellate review, any of which could affect the planned 15 November closure. But for now, the court has made no finding that anyone misled it or broke an ethics rule.

The probe adds to a run of congressional inquiries facing the administration, and it comes as the Justice Department is already under scrutiny in other high-profile matters. How far the special master goes, and how quickly, will be decided after the parties file their responses this week.