Tag

#judicial independence

Attacks on the independence of the judiciary, including defiance of court orders, threats against judges, attempts to pack or restructure courts, and interference with judicial proceedings or appointments.

5 incidents

Rule of Law
Serious Rights Violation Ongoing

Immigration Judiciary Purge: 113 Judges Fired Without Due Process, Including Retaliation Against Judges Who Protected Free Speech

Over 113 immigration judges have been fired without due process since January 2025 — more firings in one year than in the entire prior history of the immigration court system. The April 2026 firing of two judges specifically because they dismissed deportation cases against pro-Palestinian activists represents direct judicial retaliation: punishing judges for ruling against the administration, fundamentally corrupting the independence of courts adjudicating life-and-death immigration cases.

Sources
6
immigration judgesjudicial independencedue processRümeysa ÖztürkMohsen Mahdawi
Updated December 22, 2025 Deportation & Immigration
Serious Rights Violation Ongoing

Deportation Traps at Immigration Court Hearings and Systematic Denial of Due Process

ICE turned mandatory immigration court hearings into arrest traps, coordinating in real time with government attorneys to arrest immigrants whose cases were dismissed. Record-setting asylum denials, in absentia orders tripling to 50,000, and 'rocket dockets' processing cases too fast for legal representation destroyed systematic access to due process.

Sources
6
due processdeportation trapimmigration courtin absentiarocket docket
Updated March 26, 2026 Rule of Law
Serious Rights Violation Ongoing

ICC Immunity Demands: Ultimatum to Amend Rome Statute and Exempt Americans from War Crimes Prosecution

A systematic campaign to destroy the International Criminal Court's ability to hold Americans accountable for war crimes, combining unprecedented sanctions on judges with demands to rewrite the Rome Statute itself. The campaign goes far beyond any previous US opposition to the ICC, seeking not merely non-cooperation but the permanent restructuring of international criminal justice.

Sources
15
ICCRome Statutesanctionsimmunitywar crimes
Updated January 15, 2026 Rule of Law
Serious Rights Violation Ongoing

Executive Order Sanctioning International Criminal Court Officials

The administration imposed escalating sanctions on ICC officials -- including judges and prosecutors -- for investigating US citizens and allies, obstructing international criminal accountability and drawing broad condemnation from the UN and international legal community.

Sources
6
ICCinternational justicesanctionsRome Statuteobstruction of justice