Judge halts Trump administration’s arrests at immigration courts

US President Donald Trump speaks to the press in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on June 3, 2026. (Photo by Mandel NGAN / AFP)

A federal judge in California issued an order on Tuesday that prohibits the Trump administration from arresting migrants at immigration courts across the United States.

Following President Donald Trump’s return to office, Homeland Security agents have routinely waited outside immigration courts nationwide and detained migrants as they exit after asylum hearings.

Missing an immigration court hearing can be a criminal offense in some jurisdictions and may itself trigger deportation proceedings, forcing many migrants to attend hearings despite the risk of arrest.

US District Judge P. Casey Pitts ruled that the policy violated the Administrative Procedure Act and described it as “arbitrary and capricious.”

Judge Pitts noted that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) “failed to provide reasoned explanations for their actions,” adding that their presence in courtrooms had a “chilling” effect on participants.

James Percival, general counsel at Homeland Security, condemned the ruling, asserting that a noncitizen ordered to be deported by an immigration judge should be treated the same as a defendant convicted of a crime.

“A district judge ordering otherwise is naked judicial activism in service of an anti‑American, open‑borders agenda,” he said on X.

Trump has repeatedly pushed the limits of executive authority to curb the entry of undocumented foreigners, claiming that the United States is being invaded by criminals and other undesirables.