Reyes bars further tree removal, finding the plaintiffs likely to show the Park Service did not comply with the environmental review law
Ana C. ReyesU.S. district judge for the District of Columbia, presiding over the case
In granting a temporary restraining order against further tree removal, Reyes rejects the government's suggestion that the timing of the removal was a coincidence and finds the plaintiffs likely to show the Park Service did not comply with the National Environmental Policy Act.
Responding to
The Park Service's tree removal at East Potomac Golf Course is a step in the administration's plan to rebuild the course and was carried out without the environmental review the National Environmental Policy Act requires.
“That asks rather a lot of coincidence. For now, Plaintiffs have satisfied the factors necessary for the Court to enter a temporary restraining order prohibiting further implementation of the TMP. They have shown a likelihood of success on jurisdiction: the individual plaintiffs regularly golf at East Potomac Golf Course, and the TMP is final agency action. They have also shown a likelihood of success on their National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) claim as NPS likely failed to comply with that statute’s procedural and “hard look” requirements.”
Original text
Where this statement fits
Judge bars further tree removal at East Potomac Golf Course and rejects a Justice Department motion to disqualify her
The National Park Service removed about 430 trees from East Potomac Golf Course in Washington on October 10, 2026, the morning after the government gave notice in a lawsuit by the DC Preservation League and two golfers that challenges the Trump administration's plans for the course. U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes barred further removal, finding the plaintiffs likely to show the agency did not comply with required environmental review. The government then moved to disqualify her for bias, and she denied the motion on October 18. The next day President Trump attacked the judge and said work would begin immediately.
Source and context
Original text
About this source
Reyes granted the plaintiffs' emergency motion and barred further work under the Park Service's tree management plan at East Potomac Golf Course. The opinion describes the October 10 tree removal and testimony from the October 12 hearing.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
Reyes summarized the government's position that the tree plan carries out a 2019 report on the course's historic setting and has nothing to do with plans to rebuild the course, noting that the trees came down weeks after Trump asked the Interior Department to cut down trees at the course.
After the quotation
She wrote that the felling of hundreds of healthy, non-invasive trees has no adequate remedy at law and that the government had professed no interest in removing the remaining trees urgently, citing a park official's testimony.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point is the Interior Department's October 2026 removal of trees at East Potomac Golf Course and its plans to rebuild the course. Reyes rejects the government's suggestion that the timing of the removal was a coincidence, saying it "asks rather a lot of coincidence", and finds the Park Service likely failed to comply with the law's procedural and review requirements, so we labeled it Condemned. The closest competing label is Challenged the characterization; it loses because she goes beyond disputing the government's account and bars further work.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
More from this case
Read the full caseTrump says Interior has "an absolute right" to renovate the course and calls the judge "a crazed lunatic"
“The United States Department of Interior wants to take a terrible and very unsafe golf course, and make it into a great, safe, and prestigious golf course. They have an absolute right to do so. It’s as simple as that! The judge on the case is a crazed lunatic whose courthouse tapes will reveal, may be insane?”Read statement
Reyes denies the disqualification motion, saying what happened was not bias but the government's decision to remove trees
“So what happened? Not sudden onset bias. Instead, the Government decided to remove over 500 healthy, non-invasive trees from East Potomac Golf Course.”Read statement
DC Preservation League says the government razed hundreds of trees before the plaintiffs could challenge the work
DC Preservation League
“But, on October 10, Defendants did exactly what they said they would not do: they razed hundreds of trees on the golf course before Plaintiffs had an opportunity to challenge Defendants’ actions.”Read statement
Share or embed this statement
The embed keeps its attribution link to The Dispute Index. Credit the image to The Dispute Index and link to the statement page.
Cite this record
- Publisher
- The Dispute Index
- Title
- Reyes bars further tree removal, finding the plaintiffs likely to show the Park Service did not comply with the environmental review law
- First published
- Last updated
- Permalink
- https://disputeindex.com/events/6247-in-granting-a-temporary-restraining-order-against-further
Last updated marks the most recent saved version of this published statement.
The Dispute Index. "Reyes bars further tree removal, finding the plaintiffs likely to show the Park Service did not comply with the environmental review law". First published: 2026-10-20. Last updated: 2026-10-20. https://disputeindex.com/events/6247-in-granting-a-temporary-restraining-order-against-further