Federal judge blocks ICE from making arrests at US courthouses
A federal judge in California issued an order on Tuesday, June 23, that blocks the Trump administration from detaining non-American citizens in immigration courthouses and limits how long non-citizens can be held in short-term facilities.
U.S. District Judge P. Casey Pitts’ order comes in response to a lawsuit filed in the Northern District of California over Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s detention of noncitizens who attend immigration court hearings. The case challenges the agency’s practice of holding noncitizens in facilities without beds or other adequate accommodations, sometimes for days at a time.
In the 71-page order, Pitts criticized the Trump administration’s policy of making immigration court arrests as having a “chilling effect” that threatens to undermine the nation’s immigration system. He rejected claims that immigrants with solid legal cases have nothing to fear from the Trump administration’s order to detain people at courthouses.
“The proper functioning of the immigration system depends on the participation of non-citizens in planned deportations,” Pitt said. he wrote. “Thus, the deterrent effect of courthouse arrests can undermine the proper enforcement of immigration laws, even if they only affect noncitizens who are likely to be removed at the end of the process.”
Pitt also noted that witnesses testified that Trump’s policy of holding immigrants in facilities meant only 12-hour detention resulted in “inhumane” conditions. Noncitizens also testified about similar conditions at so-called temporary ICE detention facilities across the country.
USA TODAY reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment on the judge’s decision banning the policy of making such arrests.
ICE under the Trump administration has widely used the practice of detaining noncitizens who routinely appear in immigration court. According to the lawsuit filed in California, the Department of Homeland Security’s immigration enforcement arm turned “immigration courthouses and routine reporting checks into stringent arrest operations.”
The administration also made extensive use of detaining noncitizens in facilities without beds or with limited access to food and toilets, sometimes for days at a time.
Immigration advocates across the country celebrated Pitt’s decision.
U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-TX) called it “excellent news.”
“Immigrants who come to court the ‘right way’ have been targeted by this administration,” the El Paso county representative said. he said. expression. “I am delighted to see this blatantly illegal and cruel policy overthrown.”
This article first appeared on USA TODAY: Federal judge blocks ICE from making arrests in US courthouses
