Judge orders Trump administration to answer for tree removals at Washington DC golf course

At a hearing in July, Reyes, an appointee of President Joe Biden, ordered the Trump administration to notify the court before making sudden alterations to the course. She said she was worried about how quickly plans were taking shape, and she did not want to find out work had begun too late to “stop the trains”.

On Friday evening, the Justice Department filed documents showing the administration intended to remove 529 trees as part of a larger restoration. By Saturday morning, machinery could be seen cutting down trees. The government acknowledged Monday that more than 400 were removed in one fell swoop.

In a filing Sunday night, lawyers representing the DC Preservation League asked Reyes to block further action, noting that the government had indicated that there were still “hundreds more” trees to be cut, prompting her to call for the emergency hearing.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.