KQED's Forum Fired Federal Immigration Judges Speak Out
Oct 23, 2025
Chloe Dillon and Elisa Brasil, both former federal immigration judges, delve into the troubling firings during the Trump administration. Chloe highlights how these dismissals jeopardize due process for millions of immigrants and how the immigration court system has deteriorated. They discuss the heavy burdens on judges, the rushed nature of asylum hearings, and the impact of expedited removals on legal rights. Tyche Hendricks adds insights on community reactions and the broader implications for immigrant populations in the Bay Area.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Courts Overburdened, Expedited Removal Risks Due Process
- Immigration courts handled the vast majority of removals but were already massively overburdened with about 3.6 million pending cases.
- Chloe Dillon warned that expanded expedited removal circumvents neutral decision makers and pressures people to self-deport.
Detention Conditions Coerce Case Abandonment
- Detention conditions are driving people to abandon legal claims: lack of medicine, poor food, and restricted attorney contact coerce releases.
- Elisa Brasil reported detained clients often give up fighting their cases because conditions are intolerable.
High Volume, Compressed Asylum Hearings
- Immigration judges carry heavy dockets and often hear extensive testimony in compressed timeframes.
- Chloe Dillon described handling thousands of cases with minimal staff, creating a "traffic court" pressure for life-or-death decisions.