Democracy Dies in DarknessA judge barred federal agents from routinely detaining people who show up for proceedings in New York City’s immigration courts, saying that people shouldn’t have to risk arrest to exercise their legal right to pursue an asylum claim or attend a deportation hearingMay 19, 2026FILE - A Dominican man, left, and an activist, right, are detained by plainclothes officers with Immigration and Customs Enforcement after an immigration hearing at the immigration court inside the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building in New York, on June 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura, File)By Larry Neumeister | APNEW YORK — A judge barred federal agents from routinely detaining people who show up for proceedings in New York City’s immigration courts, saying that people shouldn’t have to risk arrest to exercise their legal right to pursue an asylum claim or attend a deportation hearing.