Now, only \u201cunder certain enumerated circumstances\u201d will ICE be permitted to make arrests at three Manhattan immigration courts in Manhattan \u2014 201 Varick Street, 290 Broadway and the now infamous 26 Federal Plaza \u2014 the judge ruled.<\/p>\n
ICE had repeatedly argued that an agency guidance memo from May 2025 justified its arrests of people outside of immigration courtrooms \u2014 which until the second Trump administration, have historically been discouraged.<\/p>\n
But in March, federal prosecutors apologized to Castel for a \u201cmaterial mistaken statement of fact that the government made to the court.\u201d<\/p>\n
The memo \u201cdoes not and never has\u201d applied to arrests at immigration courts, the government conceded \u2014 only to other courthouses. The government blamed the mistake on \u201cagency attorney error.\u201d<\/p>\n
Castel said he relied heavily on that erroneous guidance in greenlighting the practice last year.<\/p>\n
\u201cHere, defendants\u2019 concession that the 2025 ICE courthouse arrest policies never applied to immigration courts warrants reexamination of the prior ruling, both to correct a clear error and prevent a manifest injustice,\u201d Castel wrote.<\/p>\n
New York Civil Liberties Union lawyer Amy Belsher \u2014 representing a group of plaintiffs suing the government over the arrests \u2014 said in March that the government\u2019s error led to countless detentions that may have otherwise been blocked by the court.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the months since the court relied on the government\u2019s representation to deny plaintiffs preliminary relief, defendants have continued arresting noncitizens at their immigration court hearings, resulting in their detention \u2014 often in facilities hundreds of miles away,\u201d she said at the time.<\/p>\n
The underlying case was brought by immigration groups African Communities Together and The Door, who cautioned the court that ICE choosing to make detentions at immigration courthouses discourages dutiful attendance of court hearings.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese profoundly unfair practices undermine the rule of law and the integrity of immigration courts by effectively turning mandatory court hearings into traps,\u201d the groups claim in their 2025 lawsuit<\/a>.<\/p>\n Castel initially declined their bid for an injunction to halt the practice. But now, armed with the knowledge that ICE\u2019s claims were erroneous, Castel found the agency actually doesn\u2019t have any internal rules justifying its explosion of immigration court detentions over the past year-and-a-half.<\/p>\n The only arrests that are justified are those that involve a threat to national security or public safety, pose an imminent risk of violence or involve an imminent risk of evidence destruction in a criminal case, Castel ruled.<\/p>\n Additionally, the nonprofits\u2019 interests outweigh that of the government, the judge found.<\/p>\n While he noted there \u201cis a strong government interest in enforcing immigration laws,\u201d he said the plaintiffs\u2019 interests outweigh that since \u201cICE retains the ability to pursue civil enforcement actions at locations other than immigration courts.\u201d<\/p>\n In a statement to Courthouse News, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, said they are \u201cconfident we will ultimately be vindicated in this case.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt is commonsense to take illegal aliens into custody following the completion of their removal proceedings. Nothing prohibits arresting a lawbreaker where you find them,” they said.<\/p>\n The American Civil Liberties Union, which represents the plaintiffs, didn\u2019t immediately respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n Castel\u2019s ruling undermines the practice that has become a controversial centerpiece of President Donald Trump\u2019s immigration enforcement.<\/p>\n Many viral videos have captured it in action, particularly at 26 Federal Plaza, Manhattan\u2019s largest immigration court that also includes a makeshift short-term ICE detention facility.<\/p>\n In one instance, then-New York City Comptroller Brad Lander was arrested<\/a> at the facility last summer while trying to escort someone through a crowd of ICE agents following their court hearing. In another, ICE agents shoved and injured a photojournalist<\/a> while making an arrest in the building\u2019s 12th floor hallway.<\/p>\n Our weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing
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