Fire Departments Struggle To Meet Demands Of Rural Communities | KQED

"Two immigration judges were fired late Friday: Arwen Swink, who has served nearly nine years on the San Francisco bench, and Denise Hunter, who was appointed to the Sacramento bench in 2022. In addition, four San Francisco judges are taking retirements that some told attorneys they were pressured into. They are Howard Davis, Charles Greene, Patrick O'Brien and Joseph Park, according to Milli Atkinson, director of the Immigrant Legal Defense Program at the Bar Association of San Francisco."

"The exodus comes on top of the previous firings of 12 San Francisco immigration judges this year. Nationwide, more than 100 immigration judges have been forced out of their jobs, leaving roughly 600 adjudicators to handle 3.4 million cases. San Francisco's court, which had 21 judges earlier this year, will now have four. It is one of the nation's busiest, with a backlog of more than 120,000 cases. Along with the historically smaller courts in Concord and Sacramento, it handles all the asylum and other deportation cases from Bakersfield to the Oregon border."

"California has paused its plan to resume issuing contested commercial driver's licenses under pressure from the Trump administration, according to state transportation officials, leaving thousands of immigrant truck and bus drivers uncertain if they can keep their jobs. The delay is the latest twist in a months-long dispute between California and the federal government over non-domiciled commercial drivers' licenses for noncitizens who are auth"

More than 100 immigration judges have been forced out nationwide, leaving roughly 600 adjudicators to handle 3.4 million cases. San Francisco's immigration court shrank from 21 judges earlier this year to four, creating a backlog exceeding 120,000 cases. The Sacramento bench was reduced from six to three judges and is responsible for about 30,000 cases. The Concord court, promised 21 judges at opening, currently has seven and about 60,000 cases. Two judges were fired and four San Francisco judges announced retirements reportedly under pressure. California paused plans to resume issuing contested commercial driver's licenses, affecting thousands of immigrant drivers.

Read at Kqed