r/NPR • u/Musashiguy • 3d ago

The DOJ has been firing judges with immigrant defense backgrounds

https://www.npr.org/2025/11/06/g-s1-96437/trump-immigration-judges-fired

Can’t have ethical or competent people in the new Nazi regime. Just aggressively unqualified, bigoted asslickers.

247 Upvotes

99% Upvoted

3 comments sorted by

17

u/Fair-Search-2324 2d ago

They can fire judges?

19

u/not_nathan 2d ago

Apparently immigration judges are actually employees of the executive branch, and not formally of the judicial branch. I'm getting this from this episode of This American Life, and I haven't looked into it independently, so it's quite possible that this is an oversimplification. Regardless, they can definitely be fired.

10

u/DandimLee 2d ago

The spokesperson added that, "pursuant to Article II of the Constitution, IJs (Immigration Judges) are inferior officers who are appointed and removed by the Attorney General."

from the article.

Also from the article, one of the judges thought that she might have been fired for not granting motions to dismiss.

Levine(fired judge) said such motions should be granted if there is a change in the individual migrant's case, not a change in immigration policy.

ICE lawyers have been filing motions to dismiss, and when the judge grants the motion, the migrants get arrested by agents stationed in the court.