Iran acknowledges significant progress in negotiations: report
President Trump has announced a potential agreement with Iran aimed at stopping military strikes amid recent tensions. Meanwhile, two former court clerks from Utah are facing felony accusations for allegedly assisting illegal immigrants in avoiding ICE enforcement. Additionally, the Justice Department indicated that around 425,000 unaccompanied minors are unaccounted for, with some victims falling prey to criminal exploitation, which has led to child smuggling arrests.
On another front, a federal judge, known for blocking several Trump administration immigration policies, struck down rules intended to allow broader arrests in court and prolonged detention periods in ICE facilities. U.S. District Judge P. Casey Pitts, appointed by former President Biden, delivered a 71-page decision stating that ICE and the Justice Department’s Office of Immigration Review (EOIR) failed to provide reasonable justifications as mandated by the Administrative Procedure Act.
This ruling is part of Pitts’ pattern of overturning the Trump administration’s immigration approaches. Earlier, he hindered ICE from re-arresting immigrants it had previously released and mandated significant modifications to the San Francisco ICE detention center, citing overcrowding and poor conditions likely violating constitutional standards.
Pitts’ ruling has implications nationwide but differs from the sweeping injunction deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in the 2025 Trump v. CASA decision. Instead of preventing the enforcement of a policy through an injunction, Pitts nullified the policy itself under the Administrative Procedure Act, effectively removing it.
The decision followed a lawsuit from a group of asylum seekers contesting the 2025 policy, which lifted restrictions on civilian immigrant arrests in courts and allowed detainees to be held in short-term facilities for up to 72 hours, reversing the previous 12-hour limit. The judge found that ICE did not sufficiently explain its reasoning for relaxing prior guidance meant to deter courtroom arrests that might discourage immigrants from attending hearings.
Pitts pointed out that the new policy fails to address the chilling effects of such arrests on immigrants’ court attendance, an essential factor in ICE’s 2021 guidance. He noted a lack of explanation for the shift in ICE’s policies regarding immigration courts, remarking that there was no indication that ICE recognized it was removing previous restrictions without providing any new guidelines.
He also dismissed a related EOIR policy that lifted restrictions on enforcement actions in immigration courts, criticizing the assumption that it would not deter immigrant participation in legal procedures. Additionally, Pitts rescinded a nationwide waiver from ICE’s 12-hour detention limit, arguing that the agency did not adequately consider alternatives to long detentions or the potential constitutional implications.
Pitts emphasized that the administration can still aim for tougher immigration policies, provided they comply with federal procedural requirements. He referenced Supreme Court precedent reaffirming that agencies must not deviate silently from established policies.
The ruling reflects similar actions taken recently by U.S. District Judge P. Kevin Castel in New York, who largely restricted ICE from making civilian immigration arrests near specific Manhattan courthouses while a separate challenge was ongoing.
The Department of Homeland Security expressed strong disapproval of Pitts’ ruling, highlighting that the legal standards for detention should apply uniformly. James Percival, the department’s general counsel, stated that any deviation from this approach suggests a political bias against established immigration enforcement.
