Inside Hyattsville immigration court’s daily challenges

Key takeaways:

Hyattsville Immigration Court handles about 21,000 pending cases yearly.

Many respondents appear without lawyers and face language barriers.

Observers describe fear of ICE and confusion among individuals attending hearings.

Families and children wait in crowded courtrooms as life-changing decisions are made.

HYATTSVILLE – There’s no sign on the high-rise office building to indicate it houses the Hyattsville Immigration Court. It looks like all the other office buildings on this commercial strip not far from the Mall at Prince George’s.

But it’s a place of life-changing decisions nonetheless. Some people come here and win appeals for asylum or an extension of their residency in the U.S. Others leave unsure of their future in the country.

“Have you seen ICE?” one