The Trump administration fired eight immigration judges in New York City on Monday, according to two people with knowledge of the matter.
The firings followed an earlier round of job cuts in New York immigration courts and are part of a broader disruption across the country, which is taking place as the president seeks to accelerate deportations.
They were confirmed by an official at the National Association of Immigration Judges, a union representing immigration judges, and a Justice Department official who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak on the matter.
All the judges were dismissed from the immigration court’s offices at 26 Federal Plaza, a building that houses the New York City headquarters for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency and has become the epicenter of migrant arrests in the city. The eight judges included Amiena A. Khan, the assistant chief immigration judge at 26 Federal Plaza, who supervises other judges there.
Before Monday, about 90 immigration judges had been fired this year across the United States, including six in New York City. There are about 600 immigration judges nationwide, according to federal officials. Union officials said that 36 of the fired judges had been replaced nationwide, including two in New York.
Monday’s firings represented a significant downsizing of staff at 26 Federal Plaza, which employs 34 immigration justices. It is one of three federal immigration courts in the city.
“The court has been basically eviscerated,” said Olivia Cassin, who was fired from her job as an immigration judge at another New York City courthouse in November. Ms. Cassin said that she had the job for more than a decade. “It feels like a Monday afternoon massacre.”
A spokeswoman for the Executive Office for Immigration Review, a division of the Justice Department that oversees immigration judges, declined to answer questions about the dismissals, including their cause.
But immigration judges who were fired earlier this year suggested that the administration was targeting judges who were considered too lenient and was also trying to create a feeling of fear.
“All of the judges are now sitting speculating about whether they’re next, and the impact that that may have in their ability to remain impartial and do their jobs fairly,” said Carmen Maria Rey Caldas, who was fired from her job as an immigration judge in August after receiving an email from the Justice Department.
Ms. Rey Caldas is a Spanish immigrant who arrived in the country at age 11 and later became a naturalized citizen. Before becoming an immigration judge in 2022, she had worked as an advocate, drawing criticism from Republicans in 2022 for criticizing ICE during President Trump’s first term.
Monday’s firings occurred two days after nearly 200 protesters gathered in Lower Manhattan to thwart a possible ICE raid, drawing the ire of federal officials. The Trump administration has vowed to ramp up deportation efforts in New York, and officials have frequently criticized its so-called sanctuary policies, which prevent local law enforcement officers from cooperating with federal immigration authorities on most matters.
Mr. Trump’s threats against immigrants have intensified since two National Guard members were shot near the White House by a gunman who was identified by the authorities as an Afghan national. In two Truth Social posts, the president wrote that he would stop migration from “all Third World Countries” to enable “the U.S. system to fully recover.”
The courtrooms and holding cells at 26 Federal Plaza have emerged as a symbol of Mr. Trump’s immigration crackdown in New York City. For months, scenes of chaos have unfolded as masked federal agents have arrested people showing up for routine check-ins, often drawing protests from onlookers and loved ones. In September, a video journalist was injured during a tumultuous moment involving federal agents outside a courtroom, less than a week after another officer was captured on video shoving a woman in a confrontation.
“The judges who were fired acted as judges — upheld the rule of law, gave equal time to each side, considered the cases carefully and did their jobs as independent adjudicators — for a very long time,” Ms. Cassin said. “It doesn’t make sense.”
Luis Ferré-Sadurní and Hamed Aleaziz contributed reporting.
Ana Ley is a Times reporter covering immigration in New York City.
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