Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) attorneys in New York City earn over $100,000 a year, enjoy generous benefits, and post about their rich social lives online—but their work is vital to the Trump administration’s goal of deporting one million people annually. These prosecutors present motions to judges to remove non-citizens, yet they largely operate unnoticed, even as the system comes under scrutiny.
One such attorney, Estefani Rodriguez, appeared visibly distressed in a Manhattan immigration courtroom last June. The daughter of Dominican immigrants, Rodriguez covered a hearing for immigrants from Latin America, many unrepresented minors. She repeatedly touched her mouth and rubbed her eyes during the proceedings, which took place via Webex. When asked if two asylum seekers were now banned from pursuing claims, she replied in a flat voice: “It appears that they are.”
Rodriguez resigned in August 2025, describing the decision as “difficult but necessary” on LinkedIn. She later reposted materials from the National Immigration Project offering training on “confronting ICE’s expanding reach and unlawful practices.” Her departure highlights a quiet crisis among ICE lawyers, who have faced growing pressure as the administration intensifies deportation efforts.
Nationally, ICE employs about 1,700 attorneys. In 2025, asylum was granted in only 11% of cases, down from the Biden years, while 43% were denied and a third were abandoned—often because immigrants feared attending hearings due to arrests in courthouses. In one instance, a Spanish speaker fled the courtroom and tried to join via mobile phone, but a lurking ICE agent in a balaclava led the judge to dismiss his case as abandoned.
ICE attorneys operate largely in the shadows, but their role is central to what critics describe as a perversion of due process. As the deportation machine accelerates, the personal and professional toll on these lawyers remains obscured, even as they carry out orders they may privately question.
