A Judge Worried a Proposed Settlement Doesn’t Do Enough to Help Victims. The DOJ Is Still Moving Forward.

ProPublica reports that the Justice Department is moving forward with a $68 million settlement against Colony Ridge, a Texas land developer accused of predatory lending targeting Hispanic residents, despite U.S. District Judge Alfred H. Bennett's public skepticism that the agreement fails to compensate victims and inexplicably allocates $20 million to police and immigration enforcement—issues never raised in the original lawsuit. The reporting demonstrates strong journalistic rigor: Despart cites direct courtroom testimony from the judge and DOJ prosecutor Varda Hussain, includes analysis comparing this settlement to 183 prior DOJ housing enforcement cases (finding only 6% lack victim compensation and none before have funded law enforcement), and features on-the-record criticism from Johnathan Smith, the former Biden-era official who originally filed the case. The DOJ is proceeding without judicial approval under a legal provision that prevents court oversight, meaning the developer faces no enforcement mechanism and victims have no recourse—a decision Smith characterizes as a "get out of jail free card." Independent search results corroborate the core facts and add context that Trump's DOJ inherited this case from Biden administration litigation, though the search results use more direct language ("slap in the face," "targeting" victims) than the ProPublica headline. Watch for whether victims pursue independent legal action or Congress investigates the settlement's unusual structure and the role of Texas Attorney General Paxton's office in introducing the law enforcement funding provision.