In Northern Virginia and across the United States, the Trump administration appears to be using a new tactic to ramp up deportations.
Inside immigration court, government lawyers are terminating cases. Then, when people step outside, they are arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), headed for immediate deportation.
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WATCH HEREOn Thursday, May 29, outside the immigration court in Sterling, video shows several men who showed up for their hearings being taken into custody.
Matthew Noonan documented the arrests in the parking lot for a local advocacy group, New Virginia Majority.
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SIGN UP He said the men making the arrest were ICE agents, many in plainclothes.
"A lot of people, including myself, believe this is just arbitrary and cruel, what we are witnessing," Noonan said.
It's unknown whether arrests also were made at the immigration court in Annandale.
A similar scene unfolded in Miami on the same day. The wife of one man who was arrested was overcome with emotion, screaming the word "injustice" in Spanish after her husband was taken away.
Recently, these types of arrests have increased across the country. Veteran Northern Virginia immigration attorney Ofelia Calderon shared what other lawyers told her they've seen inside immigration courts.
It starts with the government dropping its case.
"Thirty-four people who have been here less than two years, the government asking for dismissal, and then the minute that they get out of there, they are all of a sudden in expedited removal," Calderon said. "So, taking them into custody and placing them in a new type of proceeding where they won't get to present their case before the immigration court."
She called the action "very unusual" and a new effort to ramp up and quickly carry out deportations.
"In 20 years, I've only ever had one client who was arrested outside of a courtroom," Calderon said. "And those were very specific circumstances."
News4 contacted ICE with questions about the immigration court arrests but did not hear back.
In a statement to NBC News about a similar arrest in San Antonio, Texas, an assistant Department of Homeland Security secretary wrote in part:
"Most aliens who illegally entered the United States within the past two years are subject to expedited removals ... ICE is now following the law and placing these illegal aliens in expedited removal, as they always should have been."
Calderon said the new ICE approach could have many consequences.
"It has a chilling effect," she said. "People don't show up to court, because if you think you're going to be arrested and immediately deported, why come, right?"
Calderon warned of another consequence she said could hurt her ability to represent clients: Key witnesses may not show up, fearful that they will be arrested.
Calderon said she would never advise a client not to appear; doing so leads to penalties. She said, now more than ever before, immigrant families need to get their personal and family affairs in order before coming to court.
"You have to be prepared for the idea that your family member isn't coming home," Calderon said.
