MAURICE DUBOIS:
00:00:23
George Pappas, Jennifer Peyton and Carla Espinoza were all fired this month by email. They'd been federal immigration judges who, together, ruled on thousands of cases in Chicago and Boston. Did they give you a reason why, in your email? My email was three sentences. I had no cause. I had no explanation. We, as judges, were in fear. We were concerned. And that makes it very difficult to be impartial. We were not succumbing to that pressure, but it does feel like pressure. Were you ever told how to rule? Yes. What did they say? They told me, grant the motions to dismiss. This is when ICE was roaming the courthouses because if we dismiss the case, that person that responded then leaves the court vulnerable to immediate apprehension and expedited removal. Just so people understand, you grant a motion to dismiss the case. Correct. Now the individual what? They are no longer in proceedings. Once they left the courtroom, more often than not, they will be handcuffed and led away by the ICE officers. Take your steps. Back up. Back up.
MAURICE DUBOIS:
00:01:30
CBS News has reported on the numerous cases where ICE agents detained immigrants as they exited their court hearings. With about 600 immigration judges left, courts now face a backlog of nearly 4 million cases. [SPEAKING SPANISH] President Trump says it could take 200 years to resolve all these cases. It is my opinion that this administration could give a hoot about the backlog. The administration says repeatedly, these folks are here illegally. That's breaking the law. They've got to go. Do they have a point? Well, that's why they're in proceedings in court. There's law that we're applying, and they might have to go. They might not. What's at stake here? It's really the future of our country. If the funding is going to enforcement and there is no justice left, that shows that our country is no longer embracing the need for due process and for justice. That's a big statement, the future of the country is at stake here. Do you agree with that? Absolutely. If you're attacking the very judges that adjudicate cases, there's not going to be a rule of law. That should concern everybody, not just immigrants but US citizens. Today is them, is immigrants. What about tomorrow? Who's going to get due process denied next? We reached out to the Justice Department. It declined to comment on the firings but said the Trump administration is, quote, "vigorously enforcing our nation's immigration laws." It was a great conversation.
