Overview
- Seventeen immigration judges were dismissed across ten states this week, shrinking the bench to roughly 600 and deepening staffing concerns in courts facing record backlogs.
- A July 8 memo from Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons rescinded bond hearings for most undocumented immigrants, mandating detention through the entirety of removal proceedings.
- ICE officers are now arresting migrants at scheduled court hearings and immediately placing them into expedited removal after judges dismiss their cases.
- Legal advocates filed multiple class-action lawsuits in federal court this week seeking to block courthouse arrests and restore procedural safeguards.
- Despite a $3.3 billion infusion to expand to 800 judges, immigration courts still grapple with about 3.5 million pending cases amid the administration’s rapid enforcement push.