Class Action Suit Aims to End 'Unlawful' ICE Arrests at Immigration Courthouses
In a legal challenge filed in July 2025, a coalition of advocacy groups, including RAICES, sued the Trump administration to halt the practice of ICE courthouse arrests at immigration courts. The class-action lawsuit alleges that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) colluded to "trap" immigrants by having government attorneys dismiss their cases during routine hearings, allowing waiting ICE agents to immediately detain them for expedited removal. RAICES and other organizational plaintiffs argue that this strategy weaponizes the legal system, violates Fifth Amendment due process rights, and inflicts irreparable harm by targeting individuals who are complying with the law to seek asylum or other humanitarian protections. By transforming neutral courthouses into zones of mass deportation enforcement, advocates contend the administration has created a chilling effect that discourages participation in the judicial process and prioritizes detention over the rule of law.
