Trump admin. fires S.F. immigration judge with high asylum rate

The Department of Justice fired Judge Chloe S. Dillon, who had an impressive 96. 5 percent asylum grant rate in San Francisco, marking her as the second immigration judge dismissed outside the typical probation period. This decision follows the Trump administration's pattern of removing judges who favor asylum seekers, with four others dismissed since April, all of whom granted asylum above the national average of 42. 3 percent.

Dillon, hired in 2022, faced a chaotic courtroom scene recently, where an asylum-seeker was arrested outside her courtroom, highlighting tensions between immigration judges and ICE agents. The Justice Department did not respond to requests for comment, and Dillon still appeared in the staff directory as of Friday. Critics argue these firings reflect political motivations and threaten judicial independence. Nationally, over 50 immigration judges have been fired under the Trump administration this year, despite a backlog of approximately 3. 5 million immigration cases.

Immigration judges, unlike criminal judges, are employees of the Department of Justice, which allows the president to dismiss them at will. This dismissal raises concerns about the impact on asylum-seeker rights and the overall integrity of the immigration court system.