Trump officials face new lawsuit over immigration court arrest

Zoe Tillman, Bloomberg News on Jul 16, 2025

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WASHINGTON — Immigrant advocates are suing to stop what they allege is an unlawful effort by the Trump administration to ramp up arrests of migrants who appear at U.S. immigration courts.

The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in federal district court in Washington, claims U.S. officials are violating migrants’ due process rights with courthouse arrests and policies that make it easier to block legal paths for migrants to contest being deported. It’s the latest of many court challenges to President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown.

Lawyers for migrants accuse the U.S. Justice Department and immigration officials of unjustly targeting people who are following the rules when they show up for hearings. They also allege agents are taking people into custody who have pending claims to stay in the country.

People “have been abruptly ripped from their families, lives, homes and jobs for appearing in immigration court, a step required to enable them to proceed with their applications for permission to remain in this country,” lawyers representing advocacy groups and individuals argued in the complaint.

A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Migrants seeking asylum or otherwise challenging deportations typically pursue those claims in U.S. immigration courts. Unlike federal district courts, which operate independently from the executive branch, the immigration court system is part of the Justice Department. Immigration judges are appointed by the U.S. attorney general.

The Biden administration placed new restrictions on civil immigration enforcement at courthouses in 2021, citing a desire to protect access to the legal system. Trump administration officials rescinded that policy and replaced it with a more expansive one.

In May, a Wisconsin state judge was indicted by the Justice Department for allegedly obstructing U.S. immigration authorities trying to arrest a man who had appeared in her courtroom. The judge has denied wrongdoing and is arguing she’s entitled to immunity for official acts.

The growing presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents at immigration courts received fresh attention in June when New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, then a mayoral candidate, was arrested while trying to escort a defendant out of the building. He was released later in the day and did not face charges.

The case is Immigrant Advocates Response Collaborative, 25-cv-2279, U.S. District Court, District of Columbia.