Sterling immigration court
Address
Sterling Immigration Court: 21400 Ridgetop Circle, Suite 200, Sterling, VA 20166
Court decisions over 12 months
In plain words
Out of every 100 cases decided in this court, 6 got relief. Even so, most end without relief.
3 of every 10 cases were decided in absentia, without the person at the hearing. Going to your hearing is the most important thing you can do.
With an attorney, 9 of every 100 got relief; without one, 1 of every 100 (8.5 % and 1.3 %).
Of the 15,816 decisions in this court, 960 ended with relief, 1,299 with the case closed, 1,578 with voluntary departure and 11,979 with a removal order.
| Outcome | Decisions | % |
|---|---|---|
| Relief | 960 | 6.1 % |
| Case closed | 1,299 | 8.2 % |
| Voluntary departure | 1,578 | 10.0 % |
| Removal order | 11,979 | 75.7 % |
| Decided in absentia | 5,222 | 33.0 % |
This court and the nation
With the Sterling court, the share of cases with relief is 6.1 %: higher than nationwide (2.4 %).
With the Sterling court, the share of removal orders is 75.7 %: similar than nationwide (75.6 %).
With the Sterling court, the share of cases decided in absentia is 33.0 %: lower than nationwide (45.3 %).
With the Sterling court, the share of people with an attorney is 66.3 %: higher than nationwide (38.1 %).
Cases with the Sterling court take longer than nationwide: a median of 833 days versus 793.
With and without an attorney
| Decisions | Relief | |
|---|---|---|
| With an attorney | 10,491 | 8.5 % |
| Without an attorney | 5,325 | 1.3 % |
Compared with other courts
- Ranked 10 of 71 courts for relief (1 = most relief).
- Ranked 42 of 71 courts for cases decided in absentia (1 = most in absentia).
Decisions per month (Sep 2025 – Aug 2026)
The busiest month was Mar 2026 (1,585 decisions) and the quietest Aug 2026 (1,085).
| Month | Decisions | Relief | In absentia | Vs. prior month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2025 | 1,322 | 115 | 473 | — |
| Oct 2025 | 1,314 | 108 | 437 | down |
| Nov 2025 | 1,113 | 96 | 390 | down |
| Dec 2025 | 1,216 | 66 | 402 | up |
| Jan 2026 | 1,097 | 40 | 323 | down |
| Feb 2026 | 1,457 | 64 | 374 | up |
| Mar 2026 | 1,585 | 85 | 487 | up |
| Apr 2026 | 1,373 | 64 | 541 | down |
| May 2026 | 1,503 | 54 | 563 | up |
| Jun 2026 | 1,365 | 89 | 377 | down |
| Jul 2026 | 1,386 | 92 | 511 | up |
| Aug 2026 | 1,085 | 87 | 344 | down |
Months with fewer than 5 decisions are dotted: with so few cases, that month's percentage says little.
Judges at this court
24 judges have this as their main court in the window (3 with limited data). The one who decided the most was Jason L. Pope, with 1,458 decisions.
Sorted by decisions over 12 months. The label compares each judge with the other judges in the court.
| Judge | Decisions | Relief | In absentia | Vs. the court |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Judge Jason L. Pope | 1,458 | 3.2 % | 41.6 % | Less relief: Less relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Xavier Francois Nicola. Racine | 1,228 | 5.7 % | 36.2 % | Similar: Relief similar to the other judges in this court |
| Judge Kristie A. Padron | 1,135 | 8.9 % | 34.6 % | More relief: More relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Karen Hope | 1,109 | 1.2 % | 44.0 % | Less relief: Less relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Julia E. Egy | 1,063 | 6.3 % | 35.8 % | Similar: Relief similar to the other judges in this court |
| Judge Luther M. Snavely | 1,032 | 0.5 % | 15.7 % | Less relief: Less relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Chase Calder. Cleveland | 1,020 | 6.2 % | 32.2 % | Similar: Relief similar to the other judges in this court |
| Judge Illya-Karina J. Bonet | 1,003 | 4.2 % | 29.0 % | Less relief: Less relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge James T. Dehn | 1,001 | 6.6 % | 32.1 % | Similar: Relief similar to the other judges in this court |
| Judge Karen Marquez-Casillas | 964 | 4.8 % | 34.7 % | Similar: Relief similar to the other judges in this court |
| Judge Sarah Beth. Yeomans | 925 | 8.6 % | 26.0 % | More relief: More relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Laura Wyrosdick | 923 | 14.8 % | 34.7 % | More relief: More relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Matthew Gordon | 903 | 8.9 % | 28.3 % | More relief: More relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Anupriya Krishna | 416 | 3.1 % | 45.7 % | Less relief: Less relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Stephen Alcorn | 379 | 1.3 % | 38.0 % | Less relief: Less relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge John P. Fucetola | 377 | 2.7 % | 36.9 % | Less relief: Less relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Jennifer E. Piateski | 274 | 9.9 % | 21.5 % | More relief: More relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Luisa Santiago | 185 | 5.4 % | 46.0 % | Similar: Relief similar to the other judges in this court |
| Judge John M. Gillies | 147 | 12.2 % | 29.3 % | More relief: More relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Michael P. Davis | 71 | 2.8 % | 26.8 % | Similar: Relief similar to the other judges in this court |
| Judge Raymond J. Hartsough | 59 | 3.4 % | 35.6 % | Similar: Relief similar to the other judges in this court |
| Judge Erin Alexander | 44 | limited data | limited data | Limited data: Not enough data to compare |
| Judge Jennie L. Kneedler | 13 | limited data | limited data | Limited data: Not enough data to compare |
| Judge David D. Vandenberg | 1 | limited data | limited data | Limited data: Not enough data to compare |