Seventeen immigration court judges have been fired in a sweeping move by the Trump administration, according to the union that represents them. The sudden dismissals come as President Donald Trump ramps up efforts to speed up mass deportations of immigrants across the U.S.
The International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE), which represents immigration judges, said 15 judges were fired “without cause” last Friday, with two more let go on Monday. The union said the judges were working in 10 states, including California, Texas, and New York, according to PBS.
“It’s outrageous and against the public interest that at the same time Congress has authorized 800 immigration judges, we are firing large numbers of immigration judges without cause,” said Matt Biggs, president of the IFPTE. “This is nonsensical. The answer is to stop firing and start hiring.”
The move comes as immigration courts become a key weapon in Trump’s immigration crackdown. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers have started arresting people as soon as they leave court—sometimes after a judge just closed their case.
In some cases, immigrants win a delay or dismissal of deportation proceedings, only to be picked up by ICE agents waiting in the hallway. From there, they are pushed into fast-track deportations, often without legal representation.
The immigration court system is already overloaded, with a backlog of 3.5 million cases. Some hearings are scheduled more than a year out. Immigrants don’t get public defenders in these courts—if they can’t afford a lawyer, they’re on their own, often relying on an interpreter to plead their case.
One judge was fired after talking to a Democratic Senator.
Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois says one judge may have been fired for simply doing her job. Durbin visited the Chicago Immigration Court recently and said the judge “took time to show me the court and explain its functions.”
Soon after, the judge got an email from the Justice Department warning that all contact with Congress had to go through headquarters. Then she was fired.
“Her abrupt termination is an abuse of power by the Administration to punish a non-political judge simply for doing her job,” Durbin said.
Congress just passed a bill pumping $170 billion into immigration enforcement. Of that, $3.3 billion is going to the immigration courts. The money is supposed to help hire more judges and staff—bringing the total number of judges up to 800.
But the union says that since Trump took office, more than 100 judges have either been pushed out or forced to quit. They warn that instead of fixing the backlog, the firings will make it worse. Hiring and training new judges takes up to a year.
Right now, the system is running with only about 600 judges. Immigration courts are controlled by the Justice Department, giving the administration direct power over hiring and firing.
So far, the Justice Department has refused to comment.
