{"id":45924,"date":"2026-01-07T11:14:52","date_gmt":"2026-01-07T19:14:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=45924"},"modified":"2026-01-07T11:14:53","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T19:14:53","slug":"s-f-immigration-court-to-close-at-years-end-sources-say","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2026\/01\/07\/s-f-immigration-court-to-close-at-years-end-sources-say\/","title":{"rendered":"S.F. immigration court to close at year\u2019s end, sources say"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Shuttering of court at 100 Montgomery would come after mass-firings of immigration judges<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/newspack-missionlocal.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/cropped-Kadifa-Pic.jpg 2x\" height=\"80\" width=\"80\" src=\"https:\/\/newspack-missionlocal.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/cropped-Kadifa-Pic.jpg\" alt=\"A young woman with long brown hair and a black top smiles at the camera in a softly lit indoor setting.\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/newspack-missionlocal.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Screen-Shot-2025-08-18-at-3.37.45-PM.png 2x\" height=\"80\" width=\"80\" src=\"https:\/\/newspack-missionlocal.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Screen-Shot-2025-08-18-at-3.37.45-PM.png\" alt=\"A woman with long dark hair, wearing a white top and blue and yellow graduation stole, smiles in an outdoor setting with blurred greenery in the background.\">by\u00a0<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/author\/margaret\/\">Margaret Kadifa<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/author\/mariana\/\">Mariana Garcia<\/a><\/strong> January 6, 2026 (MissionLocal.org)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newspack-missionlocal.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/081925_MMG_MontgomeryProtester-5-780x716.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Protesters stand in solidarity with the immigrant community in front of the immigration court on Montgomery St. in San Francisco. Photo by Mariana Garcia.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The San Francisco immigration court building at 100 Montgomery St. is set to close in January 2027, sources close to the court told&nbsp;<em>Mission Local<\/em>&nbsp;on Tuesday.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Staff have been informed that the immigration court will not renew its lease at the Montgomery location, and that they will be transferred to the Concord immigration court as early as this summer. Courtrooms at San Francisco\u2019s other, smaller location at 630 Sansome St. are expected to remain open, sources told&nbsp;<em>Mission Local<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Executive Office for Immigration Review, which oversees the country\u2019s immigration courts, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newspack-missionlocal.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/mission-local-logo-300x300.jpg\" alt=\"Mission Local logo, with blue and orange lines on the shape of the Mission District\" class=\"wp-image-639216\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Want the latest on the Mission and San Francisco? Sign up for our&nbsp;<strong>free daily newsletter<\/strong>&nbsp;below.Sign up<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There were 21 judges at San Francisco\u2019s two immigration court locations \u2014 with the vast majority at Montgomery Street \u2014 in early spring 2025. There will be&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2025\/12\/sf-immigration-judges-fired-arwen-swink-ice\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">just four left by the end of&nbsp;<\/a>&nbsp;January 2026; the Trump administration fired 13 of those judges, and another four were scheduled to retire by the end of the month. There are over 120,000 pending cases in San Francisco\u2019s immigration court backlog, according to the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/tracreports.org\/phptools\/immigration\/backlog\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Five Concord-based judges have been fired, though two of those judges had not yet started hearing cases when they lost their jobs, according to the National Association of Immigration Judges.&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/eoir\/concord-immigration-court\">Seven are remaining<\/a>, according to the court\u2019s website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Both the Sansome and Montgomery courts have been sites of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2025\/06\/sf-ice-arrests-tracker\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">monthly ICE arrests<\/a>&nbsp;since May 2025, with arrests significantly slowing down in October and November. In 2026,&nbsp;<em>Mission Local<\/em>&nbsp;has not tracked any ICE arrests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.backtothepicture.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.broadstreetads.com\/assets\/278cc7bd-fdea-4cea-b1cf-b8d2175b0646.png\" alt=\"Back to the Picture SR\"\/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>According to the Executive Office for Immigration Review&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/eoir\/san-francisco\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">website<\/a>, 100 Montgomery\u2019s \u201coperational status\u201d currently remains open.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newspack-missionlocal.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/dolores8-edit-1-879x640.jpg\" alt=\"A group of ten people standing outdoors in a park with a city skyline in the background.\" class=\"wp-image-804663\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-join-the-3-250-readers-who-keep-mission-local-free-for-all\">Join the 3,250 readers who keep Mission Local free for all!<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Because of you, Mission Local reached and surpassed our $300,000 year-end fundraising goal.&nbsp;<strong>All we can say is thank you.&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Thank you for choosing to invest in a local newsroom rooted in San Francisco\u2019s communities \u2014 one that listens first and reports deeply.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you haven\u2019t yet had a chance to give, it\u2019s not too late to be part of this community.&nbsp;<strong>Your contribution today helps sustain the reporting our city relies on all year long.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We\u2019re grateful you\u2019re here \u2014 and we\u2019d be honored to have you join our donors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/mission-local.donorsupport.co\/-\/XDMXDHVN\">Donate<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/tag\/ice\/\"><mark>Latest on Immigration enforcement<\/mark><\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2026\/01\/sansome-ice-san-francisco-lawyers-committee\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newspack-missionlocal.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_9232-1200x900.jpg\" alt=\"Federal judge halts ICE attempt to stop court order mandating better conditions in S.F. holding cells.\"\/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2026\/01\/sansome-ice-san-francisco-lawyers-committee\/\">Federal judge halts ICE attempt to stop court order mandating better conditions in S.F. holding cells.<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2025\/12\/abogados-de-inmigracion-falsos-aqui-te-explicamos-como-protegerte\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newspack-missionlocal.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-16-at-10.47.19-PM-800x600.png\" alt=\"Abogados de inmigraci\u00f3n falsos: Aqu\u00ed te explicamos c\u00f3mo protegerte.\"\/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2025\/12\/abogados-de-inmigracion-falsos-aqui-te-explicamos-como-protegerte\/\">Abogados de inmigraci\u00f3n falsos: Aqu\u00ed te explicamos c\u00f3mo protegerte.<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2025\/12\/sf-ice-immigration-lawyers-committee-lawsuit-sansome\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newspack-missionlocal.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_9232-1200x900.jpg\" alt=\"No sign ICE is improving conditions at S.F. immigrant holding cells, attorneys say\"\/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2025\/12\/sf-ice-immigration-lawyers-committee-lawsuit-sansome\/\">No sign ICE is improving conditions at S.F. immigrant holding cells, attorneys say<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/author\/margaret\/\"><\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/author\/margaret\/\">Margaret Kadifa<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"mailto:margaret@missionlocal.com\">margaret@missionlocal.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I&#8217;m covering immigration. My background includes stints at The Economist in print and podcasting as well as reporting from The Houston Chronicle and elsewhere.<a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/author\/margaret\/\">More by Margaret Kadifa<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/author\/mariana\/\"><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/author\/mariana\/\">Mariana Garcia<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"mailto:mariana@missionlocal.com\">mariana@missionlocal.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mariana Garcia is a reporting intern covering immigration and graduate of UC Berkeley. Previously, she interned at The Sacramento Bee as a visual journalist, and before that, as a video producer for the Los Angeles Dodgers. When she&#8217;s not writing or holding a camera, she enjoys long runs around San Francisco.<a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/author\/mariana\/\">More by Mariana Garcia<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Shuttering of court at 100 Montgomery would come after mass-firings of immigration judges by\u00a0Margaret Kadifa\u00a0and\u00a0Mariana Garcia January 6, 2026 (MissionLocal.org) The San Francisco immigration court building at 100 Montgomery St. is set to close in January 2027, sources close to the court told&nbsp;Mission Local&nbsp;on Tuesday.&nbsp; Staff have been informed that&#8230; <a class=\"continue-reading-link\" href=\"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2026\/01\/07\/s-f-immigration-court-to-close-at-years-end-sources-say\/\"> Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr; <\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45924"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45924"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45924\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":45925,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45924\/revisions\/45925"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45924"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45924"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45924"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}