Editor’s Note: This week, two Capital News Service reporters were ousted from immigration court. It was an incident that drew national attention — and condemnation from advocates for press freedom and for people concerned about immigration enforcement under the Trump administration. Now, three days after our reporters were removed by local officials in Hyattsville, they’ve been welcomed back by higher-ranking federal officials. See the full update on the story here.
HYATTSVILLE, Md. – Federal officials ordered two reporters out of immigration court on Tuesday and barred them from observing future proceedings until they get permission from the Trump administration.
But the two Capital News Service reporters couldn’t get permission that day, and may not be able to do so for the foreseeable future.
That’s because the Department of Justice employee who processes these requests is on furlough due to the federal government shutdown.
Immigration hearings are still proceeding in the Hyattsville Immigration Court, but observers who disclose they are journalists aren’t supposed to witness them.
The ouster of journalists alarms some local officials, including Jolene Ivey, an at-large member of the county council in Prince George’s County, where the court is located. She said she is “appalled” by a situation that currently provides no remedy for as long as the shutdown goes on.
“I’m kind of shocked because our country is built on a free press,” Ivey said. “If the press can’t access immigration hearings at a time like this, then the press isn’t free. Obviously, the press is being handcuffed by a situation that was created by the president.”
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The ouster is a departure from usual practice of the past several weeks. Several CNS reporters have been sitting in on proceedings in Hyattsville during September and October, including a session of hearings in the courtroom of Judge Dinesh Verma.
Verma let one CNS reporter stay in that hearing but ordered two staffers out on Tuesday. He did not return phone calls to discuss why the practice had changed.
The reporters were then escorted to the court’s main office and referred to a furloughed employee at the Communication and Legislative Affairs Division of the Department of Justice. An automated response told callers the employee was furloughed by the lapse in federal funding.
“If you can’t get through to them, we can’t help you any other way,” Court Administrator Niel Andrade told CNS.
During two months of visits, the CNS staffers always complied with judges’ requests, identifying themselves as journalists whenever asked. Several judges have permitted them to observe courtroom hearings alongside law students, lawyers and members of the public.
Before Tuesday, CNS was not aware of a requirement that the press notify the DOJ or its Executive Office for Immigration Review of its plans to observe hearings. EOIR runs the immigration courts.
Dozens of people come through the Hyattsville court on any given day to request asylum, make other appeals or answer notices to appear for alleged immigration violations. Almost 8,000 new proceedings were filed in Maryland in the fiscal year ending in September 2025, according to TRAC, Syracuse University’s Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse. Some of the 8,000 cases are heard in Baltimore’s Immigration Court. The others are heard in Hyattsville.
The Hyattsville court takes up two floors of an office building around the corner from the Prince George’s mall. Judges in several different courtrooms hold public sessions and closed-door hearings throughout each workweek.
The DOJ says that, “When observing an immigration court hearing, members of the media must identify themselves to the immigration court front desk staff upon arrival,” as stated in an EOIR fact sheet.
Judges in the Hyattsville court often ask observers to identify themselves and explain why they’re in court, specifically whether it’s to observe or participate in hearings and whom they represent. Judges sometimes want to know who is in their courtroom because of the sensitive nature or vulnerable status of the people involved in the proceedings.
But local officials are concerned about any lack of transparency during immigration hearings. Ivey said this is yet another harmful repercussion of the shutdown.
CNS reached out to Judge Verma afterward, but he had not responded as of late Tuesday.
Several members of the Hyattsville Immigration Court staff told CNS they were not aware that members of the Communications and Legislative Affairs Division were facing furlough.
They asked reporters not to return until the government reopens.