In this file photo, a sign shows the location of an immigration court in New York City. In July, 16 more immigration judges were fired.
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Another group of immigration judges received notification via email on Friday that they are being terminated, adding to the list of personnel cuts by President Trump in an effort to expedite deportations of undocumented immigrants.
Fifteen immigration judges were informed that their employment would be terminated on July 22, according to sources familiar with the firings and confirmed by the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers. The judges were given no reason for the terminations and spoke on condition of anonymity.
The email reviewed by NPR stated, “Pursuant to Article II of the Constitution, the Attorney General has decided not to extend your term or convert it to a permanent appointment.” The judges were located in various states including Massachusetts, Illinois, Ohio, Texas, New York, and California.
Like the 50 other judges fired in the last six months, the union stated that the judges who received the recent notices were not provided with a reason for their terminations. They were at the end of their probationary period with the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), which is part of the Justice Department. Dozens of others opted for voluntary resignation through the “Fork in the Road” program to reduce the federal workforce. EOIR declined to comment.
“I wanted to stay until the end,” said one of the terminated judges, speaking anonymously. “I wanted to continue adjudicating, reviewing these cases. I believed I could make a difference as long as I was here.”
The terminations came after Congress approved a large spending bill allocating over $3 billion to the DOJ for immigration-related activities, including the hiring of more immigration judges to address the nearly 4 million case backlog. Hiring and training new judges can take more than a year.
“It’s unacceptable that at a time when Congress has authorized 800 immigration judges, we are firing a large number of judges without cause,” said Matt Biggs, president of the IFPTE union. “This undermines the enforcement of immigration laws when the enforcers are being fired.”
Recent months have seen EOIR leadership criticize judges for not efficiently managing their caseloads and encouraging adjudicators to streamline asylum reviews and provide oral decisions on case dismissals. President Trump has also expressed support for a plan in Florida to deputize members of the state’s National Guard Judge Advocate General Corps as immigration judges.
“There was a lot of political pressure, but I refused to be pushed out of this job,” said the terminated judge, noting their efforts in providing relief and deportation orders. “I have no regrets about staying until the end.”
On July 3, Massachusetts Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey sent a letter to EOIR Acting Director Sirce Owen expressing concerns over prior firings that included judges in Massachusetts courts.
“As additional classes reach this mark over the coming months, EOIR must ensure that its conversion decisions are based solely on judges’ performance,” wrote Warren and Markey, noting that typically 94% of judges are converted to permanent positions after their probationary period.
At the beginning of the year, there were approximately 700 immigration judges across the country’s 71 immigration courts and adjudication centers, responsible for revoking green cards and issuing deportation orders.
