Most San Diego immigration judges’ dockets are shifting to one judge as the others hold virtual hearings to work through the growing number of cases at detention centers across the country, court observers and immigration attorneys say, raising concerns about delays and due process. One volunte er court observer said he’s heard the judges reference the shift several times in court proceedings, particularly when scheduling future hearings. “Cases are going to get delayed,” observer Ken Nollett said. “They’re going to have to either get squeezed into gaps in his schedule, or they’re going to have to get delayed out into the future.” “I see them in the courtroom setting up a case about four months out right now,” he continued. “So that means all these people that had these cases in the fall, their cases are probably almost all going to end up more than four months from now, so it just drags out the uncertainty for them.” “Delays are happening,” immigration attorney Victor Hernandez said, noting he had already been reassigned to that one judge. “I had about five hearings scheduled for Sept. 15, master calendar hearings, and all of them just got pushed back to February.” “Justice delayed is justice denied,” said Meghan Heesch, a former immigration judge who presided over a San Diego immigration courtroom until she decided to leave in March due to concerns about the system and due process after President Donald Trump returned to office. “I prepare for my cases in advance. I know the issues,” Heesch said. “I’m familiar with the facts and the parties, and all of a sudden those are taken away and I get brand new cases where I don’t know what’s going on as much? It’s very difficult to prepare.” Immigration courts nationwide are under the executive branch, part of the Department of Justice. When asked about the shift, a DOJ spokesperson sent a statement the agency has used in response to prior inquiries about immigration court proceedings. “The Biden Administration allowed millions of unvetted migrants into our communities,” the statement reads in part.   “Reducing the immigration court backlog remains one of the highest priorities for this administration,” the statement continued. “The Justice Department is restoring integrity to our immigration system by hearing cases fairly, expeditiously, and uniformly, in accordance with the law.” Heesch noted that San Diego’s immigration court has one of the smallest backlogs in the country, saying the judges are “extremely efficient” in handling their dockets, and she wasn’t sure why they were being asked to handle detention centers nationwide. “Maybe it goes to hiring,” she said. “The administration fired over 100 immigration judges, dozens of others resigned or retired, so there’s definitely a shortage of immigration judges and a vast increase in cases in the immigration court system.” “So there’s probably just a crunch to handle the detained docket, and it is important. We don’t want people sitting in detention needlessly,” she continued. “But the question is: why are so many San Diego non-detained cases being impacted? Why couldn’t they assign one or two judges?” “I think the judges have worked very hard to keep their backlog under control,” Nollett said. “I guess the reward for that is they say, ‘Oh, you don’t have that much of a backlog, we’re going to have you do all these detained cases.’” Nollett and Heesch both raised concerns about immigrants receiving proper notice of any changes to their hearing schedules, advising anyone with an immigration case to call the Executive Office for Immigration review’s hotline at 800-898-7180 or to search the agency’s website daily to check on their case. “It really affects all of us, because if we can’t count on our court dates and we can’t count on due process to happen effectively, then it really affects democracy,” Heesch said. “We have functioning court systems all across the United States in state and federal courts. Why can’t the immigration court system get it right?” “We need an overhaul of the immigration court system in order to fix this,” she continued. “It needs to be taken out of the executive branch and put in a new entity entirely to fix it.” “Erosion of due process for anyone is erosion of due process for everyone,” Nollett added. “It’s your immigrant neighbors today, but don’t think it’s going to stop with them.” ...read more read less