Re: Stop ICE Operations at Massachusetts Courthouses

Dear Chief Justices Kimberly Budd and Heidi Brieger, Senate President Karen Spilka and Speaker Ron Mariano,

We, the undersigned organizations, community leaders, and Massachusetts residents, write with deep concern about the ongoing use of Massachusetts courthouses across the state as staging grounds for targeting and handing over our community members to federal immigration officers. Attending required court appointments has become a pipeline to detention with cooperation from Massachusetts state officials, including judicial officers following court rules. These practices–specifically that federal immigration officials are allowed into our state courts, and the open sharing of information from court officials to immigration authorities–threaten the safety of our communities.

The overly close relationship between our state courts and federal immigration officials is not isolated to the greater Boston area; we are seeing it across the state. The perception that a public institution is being used as a “deportation trap” makes people less likely to come forward, seek help, or participate in the legal process.

Black, Brown, and other marginalized ethnic immigrant community members are being singled out by federal enforcement actions unrelated to their reasons for being in our state courts. The targeting by ICE of individuals in state courts for interrogation and arrest based on perceived immigration status, race, or national origin undermines the basic principle that all individuals should be treated equally under the law. Moreover, many poor, Black, brown and other marginalized ethnic immigrant community members are overpoliced and oversurveilled, thereby representing a disproportionate share of individuals summoned to court for criminal proceedings. Further, federal immigration officials use police intelligence systems, like the Boston Regional Intelligence Center (BRIC), to unjustly target these community members for detention and deportation. The selective ICE presence and use of enforcement power in Massachusetts courthouses send a clear and discriminatory message about whose safety and dignity is protected, and whose is not.

Since January 2025, concerned community members have witnessed escalating numbers of violent arrests alongside the complicity of court officials, staff, security, and local police officers, enabling increased immigration enforcement in and around the courthouses. The Deportation Data Project’s newly released ICE arrest data shows a significant increase in courthouse arrests at Massachusetts district courts in the last year. Across multiple sites, such as Waltham, Lynn, and Boston, arrests nearly doubled or more within less than a year. At Waltham District Court, ICE arrests rose from only 11 between January 2023 and December 2024, to 21 from February 2025–September 2025. At Lynn District Court, arrests increased from 20 between September 2023 and January 2025 to 27 between January 2025-September 2025.

The current court rules allow information sharing with ICE that lead to ICE detentions and ultimately deportations that often disrupt ongoing Massachusetts court processes. Families are being torn apart, our loved ones are suffering in detention, and our communities feel the profound absence of so many of our neighbors. Efforts to document and raise awareness about the heightened risks our communities face at courthouses have been met with increased police presence and officials deflecting responsibility, claiming there is nothing they can do. Yet we know other states, such as California, Connecticut, Illinois, New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Oregon and Washington, have taken meaningful steps to protect their communities. Change is a matter of political will, and community organizations, leaders, and Massachusetts residents urge our public and elected leaders to visibly support the following demands:

1. Pass legislation to ban ICE courthouse arrests. Require ICE agents to visibly identify themselves and prohibit the use of undercover tactics in and around the courthouse. Other states have passed similar legislation, including New York’s Protect Our Courts Act and the Illinois Bivens Act.

2. Mandate virtual access to all Massachusetts courts through legislation and Massachusetts Trial Court policy so individuals can participate free from ICE presence and intimidation.

3. Stop court and law enforcement cooperation with ICE. The Chief Justice of the Trial Court should issue clear, enforceable directives to court staff that prohibit sharing information with and collaborating with ICE and other federal officers working on immigration enforcement. They should also end the use of court property, parking lots, and data systems for ICE operations. Additionally, the Trial Court should take steps to ensure that ICE dependably transports people to Massachusetts court appointments, a practice that is now inconsistent.

4. The Legislature and the Governor must act to stop those working across the legal system, including district attorneys, sheriffs, and police chiefs, from communicating or collaborating with ICE about noncitizens’ presence in jails or courtrooms, regardless of any detainers. Further, the Legislature and the Governor must take steps to ensure that state and local law enforcement are not sharing information with ICE, including through police intelligence surveillance systems and fusion centers. Lastly, they should also end the use of all state property and data systems for ICE operations.

5. Ensure transparency, reporting, and accountability. The Legislature and the Governor must enact legislation and the Chief Justice of the Trial Court should establish court rules and procedures that guarantee full transparency and mandatory public reporting on ICE activities in Massachusetts courts, including: (a) The number of ICE detainer requests, warrants and requests for information submitted to any court personnel.
(b) The number of individuals detained by town for each county. (c) The type of information requested by ICE (e.g., personal identifying information, court dates, court locations, etc.). (d) Whether each request by ICE was accompanied by a judicial or administrative warrant. (e) Whether the request was fulfilled and by whom, along with documentation of any violations and the actions taken to address them. (f) The number of Massachusetts court cases that have been derailed due to an individual’s detention or deportation. (g) The Legislature and the Governor must create oversight mechanisms to ensure compliance and accountability for violations in reporting.

6. Support community-led court observer programs. The Executive Office of the Trial Court, the Chief Justice of the Trial Court and the Court Administrator must: (a) Affirm that courtrooms are open to the public and that community members have the right to observe proceedings without harassment, intimidation, or threats. (b) Clearly outline and publicize the rights of the public both inside and outside the courthouse so there are universal protocols across MA courts. (c) Require training for court personnel and other relevant officials on the rights of anyone entering a courthouse, including court watch volunteers to uphold access to legal and community resources.

We call on your leadership to stand up for justice, dignity, and the values our state claims to uphold.