The Trump administration fired 8 immigration judges in New York City yesterday, adding to a total of about 90 immigration judges who've been fired nationwide.
The Trump administration fired eight immigration judges in New York City on Monday, according to two people with knowledge of the matter...
All the judges were dismissed from the immigration court’s offices at 26 Federal Plaza, a building that houses the New York City headquarters for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency and has become the epicenter of migrant arrests in the city. The eight judges included Amiena A. Khan, the assistant chief immigration judge at 26 Federal Plaza, who supervises other judges there...
“The court has been basically eviscerated,” said Olivia Cassin, who was fired from her job as an immigration judge at another New York City courthouse in November. Ms. Cassin said that she had the job for more than a decade. “It feels like a Monday afternoon massacre.”
The exact reason for the firings isn't clear but the suggestion being made is that these judges were singled out for being too lenient.
...immigration judges who were fired earlier this year suggested that the administration was targeting judges who were considered too lenient and was also trying to create a feeling of fear.
“All of the judges are now sitting speculating about whether they’re next, and the impact that that may have in their ability to remain impartial and do their jobs fairly,” said Carmen Maria Rey Caldas, who was fired from her job as an immigration judge in August after receiving an email from the Justice Department.
Ms. Rey Caldas is a Spanish immigrant who arrived in the country at age 11 and later became a naturalized citizen. Before becoming an immigration judge in 2022, she had worked as an advocate, drawing criticism from Republicans in 2022 for criticizing ICE during President Trump’s first term.
For several years I worked in a Social Security office that housed a group of special judges known as Administrative Law Judges or ALJs. To be clear, immigration judges are not the same as ALJs, they are actually less independent and don't go through the same process to get those jobs. In any case, there are some similarities. Social Security ALJs are narrowly focused on handling Social Security cases just as immigration judges are focused on immigration.
What I saw during my time working for those ALJs was that their jurisprudence was definitely influenced by their politics to some degree. Certain judges had a reputation of bending over backwards to find any excuse to pay someone and others took a much harder line on who deserved a share of the taxpayer largesse being handed out. I'm sure the same is true with immigration judges. Someone who worked as an advocate before becoming a judge is probably approving a lot more people to stay in the US than the average judge.
I don't know if it's legal for the DOJ to fire judges because they are soft touches but I sort of hope it is. One judge from Cleveland who was fired earlier this year is already suing to get her job back.
Tania Nemer, a former immigration judge in Ohio, filed a lawsuit Monday claiming she was dismissed based on her gender, her dual citizenship with the country of Lebanon, and her previous run for local office as a Democrat, in violation of civil rights law.
Nemer was "abruptly fired" in the middle of her probationary period despite receiving "the highest possible performance," the lawsuit alleges.
"The lightning-fast, precipitous timing indicates that the incoming Administration's decision was made -- not as part of a careful evaluation of Ms. Nemer's qualifications or fitness for office -- but instead as part of a rushed attempt by the new Administration to target disfavored civil servants," the complaint states...
Shortly after she was fired, Nemer filed a formal discrimination complaint with an Equal Employment Opportunity office, which dismissed the case.
So it doesn't sound like her case is going very well, but there are at least 90 other judges who might be tempted to follow in her footsteps. We'll have to wait and see how that turns out.
But, again, it's definitely true that not all judges treat cases the same way. Some see it as their job to essentially offer whatever help they can to the people that come before them. Others try to apply the law in a more neutral fashion. Maybe these firings have something to do with that even if no one is saying it out loud.
