Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights v. DHS

When Congress created the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in 2002, it created within DHS an Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties to make sure that the new department was exercising its power in a way that respected individuals’ civil rights and liberties. Congress also created an ombudsman’s office, tasked with helping immigrants who were experiencing problems dealing with the DHS bureaucracy. And in response to abuses in immigration detention reported during the first Trump administration, Congress created a second ombudsman’s office, this one tasked with monitoring conditions in immigration detention facilities.

On March 21, 2025, DHS announced its intention to close all three of these oversight offices and fire nearly all of the employees.

Representing the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, Southern Border Communities Coalition, and Urban Justice Center – three nonprofit organizations that rely on these offices to represent immigrants and people living near the US-Mexico border – Public Citizen filed suit against DHS to challenge the shut-down of the three oversight offices created and funded by Congress.

The court held hearings on May 19, 20, and 23, 2025. At the court’s request, Plaintiffs also filed a motion for a temporary restraining order on May 23, seeking to forestall the termination of over 300 employees from the three oversight offices that were set to take effect that day. The court denied that motion without prejudice, but ordered Defendants to post public notices indicating that the three offices remained open and would continue performing their statutory functions. DHS added those notices to each of the offices’ webpages that evening.

On July 11, the court set a schedule for discovery and briefing on motions for summary judgment. The court denied the motion for a preliminary injunction as moot.