Miami • The already backlogged immigration courts faced more hurdles Thursday when hundreds of immigrants arrived with government-issued notices to appear in court for hearings that were never scheduled.
U.S. immigration officials blamed the government shutdown and the extreme winter weather in some areas for the confusion about immigration court hearings. The part of the Justice Department overseeing immigration courts said some immigrants with notices to appear Thursday would not be able to proceed with those hearings.
In Miami, immigrants from Honduras and Guatemala who recently requested asylum in the United States arrived to a glass downtown court building only to be turned away by court personnel.