A federal judge in Virginia on Thursday ordered the Justice Department to halt all work on the $1.7 billion Anti-Weaponization Fund, freezing the program one week after a former Jan. 6 prosecutor and others sued to dismantle it. The order from U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema of the Eastern District of Virginia bars the department from transferring money into the fund, considering any claims and disbursing any payments while she weighs longer-term relief.

The order is the first court ruling to stop the program, which the Justice Department unveiled this month as part of the settlement of President Trump's civil suit against the Internal Revenue Service over the leak of his tax returns. It arrives as Senate Republicans have already delayed an immigration enforcement package over the fund, as 35 former federal judges have asked a Miami court to reopen the underlying IRS settlement, and as the Justice Department prepares to seat a five-member commission that would decide who gets paid.

What the order does

Brinkema's brief order, dated Thursday, prevents the Justice Department from "taking any further action pursuant to the creation or operation" of the program "to ensure that no funds are irreversibly disbursed" from it, according to a copy described by CBS News. NBC News reported that the order specifically covers "the transferring of money to the fund; the consideration of any claims submitted to the fund; and the disbursing of any funds from the fund." The hold remains in place while Brinkema considers a request for a preliminary injunction.

The practical effect is to stop a program that had not yet begun paying out. The Justice Department has not announced the five commissioners who will set criteria and approve claims, and NBC reported it is not yet clear how applicants would formally apply. People who say they were targeted by the government have already requested money, the network reported.

The plaintiffs

The lead plaintiff is Andrew Floyd, a former federal prosecutor who ran a task force in the now-closed Capitol Siege Section of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia until he was dismissed in July. Floyd helped investigate and prosecute defendants in the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the Capitol. He filed a sworn declaration on Thursday saying the administration "is gifting the people I helped investigate and prosecute after January 6" access to a process designed to "rush money out the door to perceived political allies, while treating me and people like me as disfavored enemies."

Floyd called the firing of dozens of law enforcement officials "appalling." Other named plaintiffs include Jonathan Caravello, a California professor arrested while protesting an immigration raid, and several nonprofits. They argue in their complaint that the fund is a "collusive agreement" between the president and his administration that "has no congressional authorization, no basis in law, and no accountability," CBS reported. Two other law enforcement officers who clashed with rioters on Jan. 6 and a group of oversight organizations have filed separate suits in Washington.

The fund

The Anti-Weaponization Fund was created as part of the settlement of Trump's civil lawsuit against the IRS, which the president filed over the leak of his tax returns by a former government contractor. The Justice Department has said the program is meant to "provide a systematic process to hear and redress claims of others who suffered weaponization and lawfare."

NBC News valued the fund at $1.8 billion; CBS put it at more than $1.7 billion. A filing last week in Miami by 35 former federal judges described the underlying settlement at $1.776 billion.

Opposition has crossed party lines. Senate Republican leaders last week pushed a vote on a roughly $70 billion package to fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Border Patrol into June after a closed-door meeting with acting Attorney General Todd Blanche failed to ease GOP anger. NBC reported that opponents have labeled the program a "slush fund" for Trump's allies.

Trump granted clemency on his first day back in office in January to roughly 1,500 people convicted of crimes related to the Capitol attack and has said they were treated unfairly. Last week, the Justice Department began removing press releases about Jan. 6 prosecutions from its website, describing them as "partisan propaganda." A Justice Department social media account said the administration "will do everything in our power to make whole those who were persecuted for political purposes."

The counterpoint

Neither the Justice Department nor the White House had responded to the order by Thursday evening, NBC reported; the White House referred questions to the department. Today's reporting comes entirely from outlets that lean left of center, and the administration's defense of the program has not yet been aired in court. Legal experts cited by CBS News are skeptical that the plaintiffs' suits can deliver permanent relief and dismantle the fund, even if Brinkema converts her temporary hold into a longer injunction.

Brinkema's next move will determine whether the freeze hardens into a preliminary injunction or lifts in days. A separate motion to reopen the underlying IRS settlement is pending before U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams in Miami. The Justice Department has yet to name the five commissioners who would run the fund, and the Senate vote on the ICE and Border Patrol package is now scheduled for June.