NPR analysis shows skyrocketing number of 'no-shows' in immigration court

NPR analysis shows skyrocketing number of 'no-shows' in immigration court A Paraguayan woman whose relative was detained by federal agents scuffles with officers in the halls of immigration court at the Jacob K. Javitz Federal Building on in New York City in July 2025. Spencer Platt/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption An immigration judge issues a stern warning: "If you don't show up, there is a good chance the court will order you removed." She speaks to an immigrant from El Salvador in a quiet immigration courtroom in Hyattsville, Md., in November. Clad in an all-black dress jacket and shirt, the immigrant - who was identified only by the number of his case - swears that his last immigration notice was lost in the mail. The judge tells him to check his mail regularly, ahead of his next appearance in January. As the room empties out, the judge says out loud that there are a number of no-shows that day. The Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, attorney in court files motions to remove five people "in absentia." The judge grants it. Those people can now be deported. A similar scene has played out, and increasingly so, in nearly every immigration court nationwide over the past year, according to immigration attorneys and NPR's early analysis of court data. More immigrants are not showing up for their mandatory immigration court hearings, allowing the government to order their immediate deportation. "What happened is that the word spread that if you go to court, you could get picked up from ICE," said Ruby Powers, an immigration lawyer based in Texas with cases all over the country. In 2025, ICE turned to arrests directly from federal or immigration courtrooms in order to meet arrest quotas set by the Trump administration. "Those instances weren't consistent around the country, but at least the word had spread, the fear had spread. And so individuals were really hesitant to go into court," Powers said. The number of in absentia removals was generally already on an upward trend each year since 2022, said Andrew Arthur, resident law and policy fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies, a nonprofit that advocates for lower levels of migration. Still, the number of such removal orders in fiscal year 2025 nearly tripled that of the previous year - topping over 50,000. NPR calculated just how many people were ordered removed "in absentia." Each of the top 10 cities with the largest number of completed immigration cases in those courts is on track to end the year with a higher rate of in absentia removals than they started. That is according to data from the Executive Office for Immigration Review - part of the Department of Justice - from January through November. Each of these courts experienced an uptick in this kind of removal order starting in the summer months. That timeline is consistent with when immigration attorneys say ICE officers began arresting people inside the courts. Loading... NPR has spoken with the family...

Preview: ~500 words