UPDATE: Clinton Judge Dies Days After Releasing Plane Hijacker from ICE Custody
A Clinton-appointed federal judge who came under fire for ordering the release of a convicted plane hijacker from ICE custody has died just days after the controversial ruling.
Judge John Steeleโs sudden release of the plane hijacker was so controversial that it sparked calls for his impeachment.
Steele, 77, died this week. No cause of death has been released.
Steele ignited a political firestorm on July 8 when he ordered Cuban national Maikel Guerra Morales, a convicted aircraft hijacker who served more than 20 years in prison, released from ICE detention while deportation proceedings continued.
The judge ruled that ICE could not return him to Cuba and had not shown that Mexico would accept him.
The decision drew swift condemnation from the Trump administration and Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL), who introduced articles of impeachment against Steele for "activist judicial overreach."
DHS also blasted the decision, saying the judge forced ICE to release "a criminal illegal alien" convicted of hijacking a plane back into American communities.