Focal Point: Lives In The Balance
An Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent obscures their badge number inside the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building in New York on March 10, 2026.

At NYC immigration courts, families brace for the worst

A labyrinth can overwhelm immigrants with limited English proficiency as they search for the right room on the right floor at 26 Federal Plaza.

Story and Photos by Ike Wood

Published on June 15, 2026 | Reported from New York, New York

A father and his family search for their courtroom ahead of an immigration check-in appointment on the 12th floor of the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building in New York on March 10, 2026.

Families dressed in their finest clothes line the hallways of 26 Federal Plaza on weekday mornings, navigating a sprawling federal complex where an immigration check-in appointment can end in detention before the elevator doors close.

Families line the hallways of 26 Federal Plaza in New York on March 9, 2026. Many dress up for immigration check-in appointments.

The Jacob K. Javits Federal Building and the neighboring Ted Weiss Federal Building together house more than seven floors of immigration courtrooms, a labyrinth that can overwhelm immigrants with limited English proficiency as they search for the right room on the right floor at the right time.

A mother holds her child while her husband attends an immigration check-in at 26 Federal Plaza in New York on March 11, 2026.

Some bring their children along, uncertain whether the family will leave together.

On March 10, ICE agents stopped a woman on the 12th floor and told her — and journalists present — that she was not a target. Hours later, agents followed her from her courtroom to the elevator bay and detained her quietly.

A woman is stopped and questioned by ICE agents on the 12th floor of the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building in New York on March 10, 2026. Agents told the woman and journalists present that she was not a target. After obtaining her name, however, agents waited outside her courtroom for several hours before following her to the elevator bay and detaining her.
Two ICE agents confer quietly about a person who arrived by elevator on the 14th floor of the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building in New York on March 9, 2026. The agents' interest appeared to be prompted by the person's appearance. Inside 26 Federal Plaza, federal agents sometimes speak candidly in front of journalists. "Everybody asks me how's life going and I tell them I'm living the dream, but it's a lie — I'm living a nightmare," one agent said before being cut off by a colleague. "Let's start with the country," the second agent said.

On the same floor, two agents on the 14th floor took notice of a person stepping off an elevator, their interest appearing to be driven by the person’s appearance.

A young boy grows restless while waiting in line during a relative's immigration check-in at the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building in New York on March 10, 2026. Long waits are common during morning hours at the building. Some families bring their children to immigration appointments out of concern it may be the last time they will be together.
A man and his family ask a court worker for directions to their immigration check-in courtroom on the 12th floor of the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building in New York on March 9, 2026. The building and the neighboring Ted Weiss Federal Building together house more than seven floors of courtrooms, and immigrants with limited English proficiency can face difficulty navigating between the two.

Court observer Peter Melck, who regularly monitors proceedings at 26 Federal Plaza, urged journalists to scrutinize agents’ public statements. When agents detained a young man and told reporters he was a wanted sex offender, Melck said such characterizations are routine and should not be taken at face value.

A young man arrives for an immigration check-in at 26 Federal Plaza in New York on March 10, 2026. After agents detained him, they told journalists he was a wanted sex offender. Court observer Peter Melck disputed the claim, saying it is routine for ICE agents to characterize detainees that way and urged journalists to treat such statements with skepticism.
Federal agents detain a young man after he exits a courtroom on the 14th floor of the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building in New York on March 10, 2026.
A Haitian man is detained by ICE agents after his immigration check-in at 26 Federal Plaza in New York on March 11, 2026.
A young man is detained inside a restricted elevator area at 26 Federal Plaza in New York on March 10, 2026.

Some agents speak candidly in the corridors. “Everybody asks me how’s life going and I tell them I’m living the dream, but it’s a lie — I’m living a nightmare,” one agent said before a colleague cut him off.

“Let’s start with the country,” the second agent said.

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