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‘Everyone has a breaking point’: the immigration judges at the sharp end of Trump’s deportation drive

The Guardian · · 2775 words · By Lok Darjee
immigration_policy Executive Overreach Judicial independence
open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/09/trump-administration-immigration…

psychologyDetected Techniques

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Loaded Language 90% confidence
Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.
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Appeal to Fear 80% confidence
Building support by instilling anxiety or panic in the audience.
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Exaggeration / Hyperbole 70% confidence
Overstating facts or claims to create a stronger emotional response.

fact_checkFact-Check Results

21 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.

schedule Pending 11
check_circle Corroborated 6
info Single Source 3
help Insufficient Evidence 1
info
“David Koelsch, a former immigration judge based in Maryland, was in Minneapolis visiting his mother and sister the day Alex Pretti was shot and killed by federal agents.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The provided web search results for this claim are completely irrelevant, returning information about the biblical King David rather than the individual mentioned in the claim.
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web search NEUTRAL — David is honored as an ideal king and the forefather of the future Hebrew Messiah in Jewish prophetic literature, and many psalms are attributed to him. David is also richly represented in post-biblic…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — David not only becomes Saul's musician but also his armor bearer (1Samuel 16:15 - 23). The Philistines, Israel's implacable enemy, soon gathers their army to invade the country.
https://www.biblestudy.org/maps/life-of-david-timeline.html
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web search NEUTRAL — The life of David is one of the most extensive biographies in the Bible. From his youth as a shepherd to his death as Israel’s greatest king, David’s life spans more than forty chapters in 1 Samuel, 2…
https://unforsaken.org/bible-studies/studies-by-theme/a-comp…
info
“Koelsch, 59, had never seen Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection officers up close in full tactical gear, masked, armed with rifles and pistols, blocking off the street.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The provided web search results are irrelevant, returning information about the biblical King David.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — David is honored as an ideal king and the forefather of the future Hebrew Messiah in Jewish prophetic literature, and many psalms are attributed to him. David is also richly represented in post-biblic…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — David not only becomes Saul's musician but also his armor bearer (1Samuel 16:15 - 23). The Philistines, Israel's implacable enemy, soon gathers their army to invade the country.
https://www.biblestudy.org/maps/life-of-david-timeline.html
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The life of David is one of the most extensive biographies in the Bible. From his youth as a shepherd to his death as Israel’s greatest king, David’s life spans more than forty chapters in 1 Samuel, 2…
https://unforsaken.org/bible-studies/studies-by-theme/a-comp…
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“Koelsch had spent four years as a supervisory asylum officer at the Department of Homeland Security before nearly eight years on the bench as an immigration judge in Baltimore.”
CORROBORATED
The claim is explicitly confirmed by a news article ('Everyone has a breaking point') and supported by other search results detailing David Koelsch's experience as an immigration judge in Baltimore and his background as a government adjudicator.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Deciding Asylum Cases Detailed data on decisions by Judge Koelsch were examined for the period covering fiscal years 2019 through 2024. During this period, court records show that Judge Koelsch decide…
https://tracreports.org/immigration/reports/judge2024/00579B…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Experienced Immigration Attorney and former Immigration Judge · 35 years of experience in complex immigration law matters, as an attorney and government adjudicator. Deep knowledge of all aspects ...
https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-koelsch-149617394
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Koelsch had spent four years as a supervisory asylum officer at the Department of Homeland Security before nearly eight years on the bench as an immigration judge in Baltimore.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/09/trump-admini…
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“Since January 2025, the Trump administration has fired more than 113 immigration judges, pushed out others through buyouts and reassignments and replaced them with military lawyers and political appointees.”
CORROBORATED
The specific figure of 'more than 113 immigration judges' fired since January 2025 is reported in the article 'Everyone has a breaking point', and the broader context of firings and lawsuits is corroborated by another source ('Immigration Judges Sue DOJ Over Firings').
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Donald Trump's second and current tenure as the president of the United States began upon his inauguration as the 47th president on January 20, 2025. Trump, a Republican, previously served as the 45th…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_presidency_of_Donald_Tr…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Since January 2025, the Trump administration has fired more than 113 immigration judges and pushed out others through buyouts and reassignments.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/09/trump-admini…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Two former immigration judges have sued President Donald Trump's administration over their removal, alleging they were discriminated against for political.
https://allaboutlawyer.com/immigration-judges-lilien-espinoz…
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“on 21 November 2025, Jeremiah Johnson, 52, a judge at the San Francisco immigration court, was having what he described as a normal day.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources confirm Jeremiah Johnson is a 52-year-old former immigration judge in San Francisco who was fired by the Trump administration.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Former immigration judge Jeremiah Johnson, takes a selfie at the U.S.-Mexico border near Sasabe, Arizona. San Francisco immigration judge Jeremiah Johnson, 52, learned that he had been fired when he g…
https://missionlocal.org/2026/04/fired-judge-goes-to-the-bor…
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web search NEUTRAL — Nationwide Comparisons Compared to Judge Johnson's denial rate of 9.6 percent, Immigration Court judges across the country denied 58.9 percent of asylum claims during this same period. Judges at the S…
https://tracreports.org/immigration/reports/judgereports/005…
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web search NEUTRAL — San Francisco immigration judges Shuting Chen and Jeremiah Johnson weren't expecting to be fired, but they weren't exactly surprised when it happened.
https://www.nbcbayarea.com/investigations/san-francisco-immi…
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“Johnson had been on the bench since 2017, appointed by then-attorney general Jeff Sessions during the first Trump administration”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources confirm Jeremiah Johnson was appointed as an immigration judge in 2017 by Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Just months after Koelsch’s resignation, on 21 November 2025, Jeremiah Johnson, 52, a judge at the San Francisco immigration court, was having what he described as a normal day. Johnson had been on th…
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/09/trump-admini…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Immigration Judges, not real judges by the way, technically they are merely adjudicators, and should be treated as other adjudicators are in the Federal government.Attorney General Jeff Sessions appoi…
https://federalefifthcolumnist.wordpress.com/2025/07/09/what…
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web search NEUTRAL — Jeremiah Johnson was an immigration judge in San Francisco.A former asylum officer for the Department of Homeland Security, Johnson was appointed as an immigration judge in 2017 under the first Trump …
https://www.theborderchronicle.com/p/this-immigration-judge-…
info
“the San Francisco immigration court, which went from 21 judges at the start of 2025 to just four early this year, according to NPR.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The provided web search results for this claim are irrelevant, returning information about San Diego International Airport (SAN) rather than the San Francisco immigration court staffing levels.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — San Diego International Airport (IATA: SAN, ICAO: KSAN, FAA LID: SAN) is the primary international airport serving San Diego and its surrounding metropolitan area, in the U.S. state of California. The…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Diego_International_Airp…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — San, buses by Polish manufacturer Autosan SAN Ecuador (Servicios Aéreos Nacionales, ICAO code: SAN), a defunct airline Sandersville Railroad (AAR reporting mark: SAN), in the US San Diego Internationa…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/San
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web search NEUTRAL — Find live flight tracking info, arrivals and departure times, news releases and blog posts, travel tips at SAN.org.
https://www.san.org/
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“The court closed 1 May, leaving a backlog of 120,000 cases and transferring much of its operations to a smaller court 35 miles away.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources confirm the San Francisco immigration court closed (one source mentions closing 'months ahead of schedule' and another mentions 'closed for good Friday' in May 2026) and that there was a backlog of approximately 120,000 cases.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The court's closure will leave one remaining immigration court building in San Francisco by 2027.There are more than 120,000 pending cases in San Francisco’s immigration court backlog, according to th…
https://missionlocal.org/2026/01/s-f-immigration-court-closu…
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web search NEUTRAL — As KGO reports, the move combines San Francisco’s roughly 120,000 pending immigration cases with Concord’s existing backlog of about 60,000 cases, according to advocates working with immigrants in the…
https://sfist.com/2026/05/04/sf-immigration-court-closes-eig…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The San Francisco Immigration Court closed for good Friday, months ahead of schedule, leaving a lengthy case backlog and adding to years-long delays for asylum seekers.
https://sfstandard.com/2026/05/03/sf-immigration-court-close…
help
“on 27 June 2025, Sirce E Owen, acting director of the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), issued a policy memorandum to all staff warning that “there are some Immigration Judges who appear to believe... that exhibiting bias is justifiable... as long as that bias is in favor of an alien”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results to confirm the existence of this specific policy memorandum issued by Sirce E. Owen.
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“A group of fired judges has already filed suit against the Department of Justice, challenging the administration’s authority to terminate immigration judges without cause or explanation.”
CORROBORATED
The claim that former immigration judges have sued the DOJ over their removals is corroborated by the search result 'Immigration Judges Sue DOJ Over Firings: Were They Targeted?'.
schedule
“the Merit Systems Protection Board... said it had no jurisdiction to review their removal.”
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“Carmen Maria Rey Caldas, 46, noted that the government paid her severance”
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“In 2022, she was appointed to the bench by former attorney general Merrick Garland”
PENDING
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“On 27 August 2025, the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, authorized up to 600 military lawyers from the Judge Advocate General (JAG) Corps to serve as temporary immigration judges”
PENDING
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“As of December 2025, only 30 military lawyers had been detailed to the courts, according to the Associated Press.”
PENDING
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“In December 2025, Christopher Day, a US army reserve lawyer serving as a temporary immigration judge in Annandale, Virginia, was fired after just five weeks on the bench.”
PENDING
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“federal data shows that Day granted asylum or other relief in six of his 11 cases, a rate that diverged sharply from other military-appointed judges, who ordered removal in about 78% of cases.”
PENDING
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“A ProPublica investigation in October 2025 found that more than 170 US citizens had been detained by immigration agents during raids and protests.”
PENDING
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“courts face a backlog of more than 3m cases.”
PENDING
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“According to ProPublica, more habeas cases have been filed since January 2025 than under the last three administrations combined.”
PENDING
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“Since the start of Trump’s second term, ICE has deported more than 605,000 people, according to DHS records”
PENDING
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.