Outside San Diego’s federal courthouse yesterday, a few dozen Catholics turned Holy Week into a quiet show of defiance, renewing a pastoral practice they say has long helped migrants facing immigration hearings: walking with them into court, praying with them and staying close as moral backup. The gathering came as faith leaders and volunteers say access inside the building has tightened in recent months and some observers have even walked away with citations from federal officers.
Participants processed with palm branches, sang hymns and then laid the palms along the route migrants would later take into the courthouse, a symbolic path that organizers described as a gesture of dignity and accompaniment, according to KPBS. Sister Francina Vivier told the outlet that many migrants arrive alone and overwhelmed by legal jargon, and she noted that volunteers were once allowed to sit quietly in the back of courtrooms to observe hearings. Addressing the crowd, Bishop Michael Pham declared, "We are not going away," urging the church community to keep accompanying migrants despite the pressure.
Courthouse Access and Citations
Volunteers say the temperature inside the building has shifted. They report that courthouse staff have posted a "No loitering" sign on the second floor, instructed observers to wait outside interview rooms and, in at least one instance, issued a citation to a volunteer who was standing and praying for migrants, per reporting by inewsource. Earlier this year, federal agents briefly detained and cited several volunteers while enforcing the rule, a move local outlets say marked a departure from earlier months when accompaniment and quiet observation were allowed, according to the Times of San Diego.
The Federal Protective Service has defended the crackdown, telling local media that the regulations have been in effect since Nov. 5, 2025, and that "obstructing access" on federal property is a crime, per KGTV/10News.
Faith Leaders Press the Court
The pastor behind the local FAITH accompaniment program, Reverend Scott Santarosa, says organizers have tried the inside track and gotten silence in return. He sent a letter requesting a meeting with acting immigration judge Catherine Halliday‑Roberts and court administration but said he never received a response, according to KPBS. Santarosa and volunteers say they want a federal judge to clarify whether accompaniment is allowed at all and have signaled they are prepared to contest any fines in court if it comes to that.
Legal Questions
Legal observers say this quiet standoff is now brushing up against bigger constitutional questions. David Loy, legal director at the First Amendment Coalition, told reporters that restrictions targeting people whose only purpose is to observe or accompany individuals into the courthouse "raise significant questions" about whether loitering rules can be lawfully applied to volunteers, per inewsource. Volunteers warn that if accompaniment is further limited, migrants could be left without witnesses or basic help at moments when detention decisions or medical issues arise.
What’s Next
Organizers say they are not backing off. They plan to keep accompanying migrants into the courthouse and intend to fight $280 citations in federal court instead of simply paying the fines, according to reporting by KGTV/10News. For now, local faith groups are keeping their Holy Week rituals, their prayers and their watch on the courthouse doors, determined, they say, to keep walking with people into those hearings.
