A federal judge who has repeatedly blocked the Trump administration's immigration policies dealt another blow Tuesday, striking down rules that expanded courthouse arrests and prolonged detention in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) holding facilities.In a 71-page decision, U.S.District Judge P.
Casey Pitts, who was nominated by former President Joe Biden, struck down the policies after finding that ICE and the Justice Department's Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) did not provide the reasoned explanation required under the Administrative Procedure Act.The ruling continues a pattern of Pitts intervening against Trump administration immigration policies.Earlier this year, he blocked an ICE initiative that would have allowed the agency to rearrest migrants it had previously released.
In another case, he ordered sweeping changes at a San Francisco ICE detention facility, citing overcrowding and conditions he found likely violated constitutional standards.BIDEN JUDGE OVERRULED ON KEY TRUMP IMMIGRATION POLICYICE agents review lists of names and hearing times inside the Federal Plaza courthouse before making arrests in New York on June 27, 2025.(Bryan R.
Smith/AFP)While Pitts' order applies nationwide, it differs from the broad nationwide injunctions that the Supreme Court deemed unconstitutional in its 2025 decision in Trump v.CASA.
Rather than issuing an injunction prohibiting the government from enforcing the policies, Pitts vacated them under the Administrative Procedure Act.When a court vacates a policy, it removes the policy itself rather than just limiting how it can be enforced.Pitts' ruling comes in response to a lawsuit filed by a group of asylum seekers challenging ICE's 2025 policies that removed restrictions on civil immigration arrests at courthouses, including immigration courts, and a separate ICE policy allowing detainees to remain in short-term holding facilities for up to 72 hours instead of the agency's longstanding 12-hour li...