Seattle Immigration Court starts 'mega' hearings, 'welfare checks' for kids [View all]

https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2026/jul/08/seattle-immigration-court-starts-mega-hearings-wel/

Seattle Immigration Court starts ‘mega’ hearings, ‘welfare checks’ for kids

July 8, 2026 Updated Wed., July 8, 2026 at 7:03 p.m.

The kids came to Seattle Immigration Court with bows in their hair and colorful backpacks. Some held hands with the adults who brought them when they went to the bathroom or to get a drink of water.

Mateo and Sandra, 6 and 8, lay their heads on their uncle Eric Jaimes’ lap and closed their eyes. Living in Pullman, they had gotten up at 5 a.m. to drive from Mukilteo, where they were staying because all the hotels close to Seattle were full of World Cup visitors, Jaimes said. “They’re just kids,” he said of his sleepy niece and nephew. “They don’t understand the complexity” of what they were there to do.

So began the first so-called mega hearing at the court Tuesday for juveniles in deportation proceedings who entered the U.S. without a parent or guardian. Mega hearings are a new Trump administration tactic that have immigration courts nationwide scheduling an unusually large number of people to appear at the same time.

These large preliminary hearings started for adults and families in Seattle in late June. Tuesday’s hearing kicked off what is expected to be four days of juvenile mega masters in Seattle before Judge Theresa Scala. Her first such hearing had 106 people scheduled throughout the day – up to five times as many as at a typical preliminary hearing – and revealed a new rationale for bringing some kids more frequently into court: checking on their welfare.

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