CNN
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Migrants are being detained by immigration agents in courthouse hallways nationwide, sometimes moments after pleading their cases, raising alarm among attorneys and advocates who say the practice is turning immigration courts from places of due process into zones of fear.
It’s the latest in a series of moves by the Trump administration to accelerate the pace of immigration arrests and target migrants, including some who have been in the country for less than two years. The courthouse arrests have stunned immigration attorneys, advocates and lawmakers who argue it punishes people who are following the rules.
The Department of Homeland Security recently rescinded long-held guidance that had limited immigration enforcement in or near courthouses. Trump officials have argued the guidance hampered the ability of immigration enforcement officers to apprehend dangerous individuals, deferring to agents’ “common sense” when making arrests near what have been known as “sensitive locations.”
“The ability of law enforcement to make arrests of criminal illegal aliens in courthouses is common sense,” DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in a news release.
But internal documents obtained by CNN show the enforcement push is much broader, beyond just people deemed dangerous — and focused on migrants who are still in immigration proceedings but not in detention, known as the non-detained docket.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have been directed to swiftly apprehend immigrants who have been ordered removed or whose cases have been dismissed, according to the internal documents obtained by CNN. Those who have been in the United States for less than two years should be placed in fast-track deportation proceedings, according to the documents. President Donald Trump expanded the process known as expedited removal earlier this year, applying it to anyone who has resided in the country for less than two years.
Under the new procedures, agents can coordinate directly with court staff to identify, locate and detain migrants — often with little warning.
“It gets crazy when they [ICE] show up,” said one staff member at an immigration court in Hyattsville, Maryland.
Asked about the courthouse arrests, a senior DHS spokesperson said, “Secretary [Kristi] Noem is reversing Biden’s catch and release policy that allowed millions of unvetted illegal aliens to be let loose on American streets. This Administration is once again implementing the rule of law.”
“ICE is now following the law and placing these illegal aliens in expedited removal, as they always should have been. If they have a valid credible fear claim, they will continue in immigration proceedings, but if no valid claim is found, aliens will be subject to a swift deportation,” the spokesperson continued.
In Phoenix, viral videos showed agents arresting immigrants outside courthouses and in public spaces. And in Maryland, a migrant was placed in handcuffs and restraints in the hallway of the Hyattsville immigration court and escorted out of the building, according to a video shared with CNN. Similar courthouse arrests have occurred in states such as Virginia, Pennsylvania, Illinois, New York and California, CNN has confirmed.
Critics warn that this practice threatens due process, deters migrants from attending hearings, and undermines the integrity of the immigration system.
In a post on X, Democratic Sen. Ruben Gallego of Arizona criticized the ICE arrests in Phoenix, calling them “chaos that doesn’t bring any more security” and saying they discourage court attendance, making the immigration system “less efficient — not more.”
Enforcement in and near courthouses has historically been discouraged and generally avoided among immigration enforcement officers — and allowed only in limited circumstances.
“I don’t know that any policy ever expressly covered immigration courts, because the idea of arresting people at an immigration court is bizarre and historically only happens if someone violated the terms of their release,” said John Sandweg, former acting ICE director under the Obama administration.
There are nearly 4 million immigration cases pending, based on data from the Executive Office for Immigration Review. In the fiscal year 2024 alone, 1.8 million new deportation cases were filed. Most migrants in those cases are not in detention, which helps explains why the Trump administration — which is eager to boost its deportation numbers — is targeting migrants for arrest when they show up in court.
The arrestees have included migrants like Dylan, a 20-year-old Bronx high school student from Venezuela, who was detained by ICE after his routine hearing in an immigration court in lower Manhattan. He had no criminal record.
Dylan’s attorneys told CNN he completed high school in Venezuela but enrolled at Ellis Preparatory Academy in the Bronx to prepare for college.
The Department of Homeland Security has said he entered the US illegally, was released under the Biden administration, and was arrested on May 21 for expedited removal proceedings.
Immigration attorney Rachel Girod recounted the case of a client with no criminal record who was arrested outside the Baltimore Immigration Court. In 2024, he showed up for a routine ICE check-in, but officers told him they weren’t taking appointments that day and instructed him to return in 2025. An officer wrote the new date on a scrap of paper, which the client brought home, Girod said.
ICE later concluded that he had missed his 2024 check-in and flagged him for removal. Girod said it appears the agency never recorded the rescheduled date, since it was only written down by hand and not entered into their system. When he was detained, he no longer had the paper to prove what he’d been told.
Her client was later arrested and taken to the George Fallon Federal Building in Baltimore, where advocacy groups say conditions are poor. Another of Girod’s clients was detained following an asylum hearing and sent to a detention center in Louisiana. In the past four months, she said at least four of her clients have been detained by ICE — either following routine check-ins or after appearing in court.
Attorney Adam Crandell said that while none of his clients have been arrested in court, some have been detained during ICE check-ins.
“People who have been following the court rules, including those without legal representation, are being arrested outside courtrooms,” said Kelli Stump, president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.
“This tactic is not only morally wrong, but also self-defeating,” Stump added.
According to Sarah Rogerson, a professor at Albany Law School and founder of its Immigration Law Clinic, these tactics have also occurred at state courts. Migrants appearing for civil matters, including domestic violence or custody cases, are increasingly being arrested.
“When immigrants fear arrest by ICE, they may avoid court altogether — even when seeking protection,” Rogerson said.
CNN’s Dianne Gallagher and Polo Sandoval contributed to this report.
