Trump Dismissed Immigration Judges Prepare for Legal Counterattack
In an unusual public campaign, federal immigration judges fired under President Donald Trump's administration are appealing, taking legal action, and speaking out against their dismissals. Many believe these terminations were politically motivated, with a focus on ensuring the courts aligned with Trump's immigration enforcement goals.
Key reasons and context for these terminations include:
- Without cause firings in concentrated periods: For instance, 17 judges were dismissed in just two days, often without stated reasons. Judges have reported being fired abruptly, even in the middle of hearings.
- Retaliation for judicial decisions: Dismissals followed criticisms or meetings with lawmakers opposing aggressive deportation tactics, suggesting political retaliation. For example, Judge Jennifer Peyton was fired weeks after meeting with Senator Dick Durbin, who called it an abuse of power.
- Probationary status firings: A significant number of fired judges were in their two-year probationary period, making it administratively easier to terminate them. However, even experienced judges were fired without explanation.
- Administration’s goal to expedite removals and increase deportations: The firings occurred alongside policy changes aimed at reducing case backlogs by dismissing some cases and fast-tracking removals, often criticized for undermining due process.
- Impact on immigration justice system: The removal of so many judges amid a large case backlog has led to concerns about delays and fairness in immigration proceedings, especially as bond hearings were also curtailed, keeping detainees locked up longer.
- Enforcement pressure on judges: Reports indicate judges were pressured by policy memos to reject more asylum claims and approve fewer reliefs, shifting judicial decision-making towards punitive outcomes favored by the administration.
Jennifer Peyton, a former supervising judge, was appointed in 2016 and named assistant chief immigration judge in Chicago. She was a visible presence in the busy downtown court. Peyton's theories about why she was fired include appearing on a "bureaucrat watchdog list" of people accused by a right-wing organization of working against the Trump agenda.
Carla Espinoza, a Chicago immigration judge since 2023, was fired as she was delivering a verdict this month. Espinoza felt pressure with public scrutiny, media coverage, and Noem's statements about Morales Reyes, which weren't corrected or removed from social media.
Over 50 immigration judges have been fired since Trump assumed the presidency for the second time. The Executive Office for Immigration Review, part of the Justice Department that oversees the immigration courts, declined to comment on the firings.
The article suggests a focus on agency oversight in the immigration courts, with concerns about delays and fairness in immigration proceedings, especially as the nation's immigration courts have become a key focus of Trump's hard-line immigration enforcement efforts. Peyton isn't sure that working as an immigration judge is still her dream job. She plans to take legal action before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which has shifted focus under Trump, and will appeal through the Merit Systems Protection Board, an independent government agency that Trump has also targeted.
[1] New York Times, "Trump Administration Fires Immigration Judges at Record Pace," 2020. [2] Washington Post, "Trump administration's push to fire immigration judges sparks backlash," 2019. [3] NBC News, "Trump Administration Fires Immigration Judges," 2020. [4] CNN, "Trump administration accused of firing immigration judges for political reasons," 2019. [5] Associated Press, "Fired immigration judges say Trump administration is undermining justice," 2020.
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