--- title: "ACLU sues Hartford immigration court over access to records" publication: "MediaBias News" url: "https://mediabias.news/politics/aclu-sues-hartford-immigration-court-over-access-to-records" api: "https://mediabias.news/api/v1/stories/aclu-sues-hartford-immigration-court-over-access-to-records" markdown: "https://mediabias.news/politics/aclu-sues-hartford-immigration-court-over-access-to-records.md" audio: "https://mediabias.news/api/audio/aclu-sues-hartford-immigration-court-over-access-to-records" category: "Politics" area: "United States" published: "2026-09-11T21:46:29.303Z" source_reported: "2026-09-11T20:03:46.000Z" updated: "2026-09-11T21:46:29.303Z" trust_score: 60 critic_score: 70 hype_score: 10 assessment_type: "coverage-and-source-reporting-analysis" fact_check_status: "not-performed" coverage_measured: "2026-09-11T22:45:21.231365+00:00" --- # ACLU sues Hartford immigration court over access to records *The lawsuit claims the court is withholding basic data, arguing it should be publicly accessible under the First Amendment.* **Scores for the source reporting** (0-100, assessing the original journalism this article was written from, not this write-up): - Trust 60 of 100, higher is better. Two full reports and five digests corroborate the lawsuit's filing and its basic claims. - Craft 70 of 100, higher is better. The reporting clearly separates the lawsuit's claims from any official response or counter-argument. - Hype 10 of 100, lower is better. The language used is neutral and factual, with no sensationalism or exaggeration. Scored by MediaBias News; method at https://mediabias.news/methodology. **The short version** - The ACLU of Connecticut filed a federal lawsuit alleging the Hartford immigration court is withholding basic immigration records. - The lawsuit names U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche and chief immigration judge Angela Munson. - ACLU-CT requested docket numbers, case captions, and 'in absentia' removal orders for May-July 2026. - The group claims the information should be accessible under the First Amendment, not just through FOIA. The Connecticut chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU-CT) has filed a federal lawsuit against the Hartford immigration court. The suit, filed on Wednesday, alleges the court is withholding access to basic immigration records. The ACLU-CT is seeking a declaration that the court is bound by the First Amendment right of public access to these records. The lawsuit names U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche and the chief immigration judge for the Hartford court, Angela Munson. According to the complaint, the ACLU-CT requested docket numbers, case captions, and 'in absentia' removal orders for May through July 2026. The organization stated it made the request twice without receiving a response. The ACLU-CT contends that this information should be available under the First Amendment, rather than requiring a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, which can involve lengthy delays and government discretion in withholding information. ## Disagreement on the nature of the request The Washington Top News and The CT Mirror reports state that the ACLU-CT requested docket numbers, case captions, and 'in absentia' removal orders for May 2026 through July 2026. The Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer digest states the ACLU requested basic immigration records and names the defendants. ## What the coverage left out None of the left-rated digests mention the specific details about potential privacy and safety concerns related to releasing immigration data, nor the remarks from U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, which were included in the centre-rated reports. The right-rated digest did not include the specific dates for which records were requested or the ACLU's argument that the information should be available under the First Amendment. ## Who covered it Shares of the 9 covering outlets with a published leaning rating: - Left: 56% (5) - Centre: 33% (3) - Right: 11% (1) 0 of 9 covering outlets carried no usable leaning rating and were excluded from those percentages. Coverage measured 2026-09-11T22:45:21.231365+00:00. **Coverage watch:** developing. Checked 8 times; 0 checks found a material change. Most recently checked 2026-09-11T23:45:18.764Z. ## How the sides framed it ### Left - The left-rated reports led with the ACLU's lawsuit against the Hartford immigration court, stating the court is withholding basic immigration records. These reports detailed the specific information requested by the ACLU-CT: docket numbers, case captions, and 'in absentia' removal orders for May-July 2026. They also highlighted the ACLU's argument that this data should be accessible under the First Amendment, not solely through FOIA. The Toronto Star, Associated Press News, The Hamilton Spectator, and St Catharines Standard digests all carried these core details. ### Centre - The centre-rated reports from Washington Top News and The CT Mirror focused on the lawsuit filed by the ACLU-CT, detailing the allegations that the Hartford immigration court is withholding basic immigration records. Both reports named U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche and chief immigration judge Angela Munson as defendants. They specified the ACLU-CT's request for docket numbers, case captions, and 'in absentia' removal orders for May-July 2026, and explained the group's claim that such information should be available under the First Amendment. Washington Top News also included commentary from ACLU-CT legal director Dan Barrett regarding the practicalities of accessing court information and potential privacy concerns, as well as remarks from U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal about perceived 'purposeful chaos' in immigration courts. The Winnipeg Free Press digest also reported on the lawsuit and the ACLU's claim regarding First Amendment access. ### Right - The right-rated report from the Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer digest stated that the Connecticut chapter of the ACLU has filed a federal lawsuit against the Hartford immigration court, alleging the court is withholding access to basic immigration records. This digest also named U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche and the court's chief judge as defendants. **Provisional coverage gap:** right. The watch is not closed, so this is not yet a settled blindspot finding. ## Factuality profile of the covering outlets These are published factuality ratings of the outlets, not a verdict on whether this story or its claims are true. - high: 7 - veryHigh: 2 ## Verification scope This page compares coverage and scores the source reporting. It is not a ClaimReview verdict on whether the underlying event or claim is true. ## Original reporting this was written from - [Washington Top News](https://wtop.com/national/2026/09/aclu-lawsuit-seeks-release-of-hartford-connecticut-immigration-court-data) — ACLU lawsuit seeks release of Hartford, Connecticut immigration court data – WTOP News - [The Toronto Star](https://thestar.com/news/world/united-states/aclu-lawsuit-seeks-release-of-hartford-connecticut-immigration-court-data/article_43fbc730-65c3-5d30-b1d5-e26fd99a6755.html) — ACLU lawsuit seeks release of Hartford, Connecticut immigration court data - [Associated Press News](https://apnews.com/article/hartford-immigration-court-aclu-records-lawsuit-9020d8dc1cc7ef9f4a6bba29c799cbec) — ACLU lawsuit seeks release of Hartford, Connecticut immigration court data - [Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer](https://messenger-inquirer.com/ap/ap_national_news/aclu-lawsuit-seeks-release-of-hartford-connecticut-immigration-court-data/article_f1552409-ee91-5d44-bab0-c39aae0d22f3.html) — ACLU lawsuit seeks release of Hartford, Connecticut immigration court data - [The Hamilton Spectator](https://thespec.com/news/world/united-states/aclu-lawsuit-seeks-release-of-hartford-connecticut-immigration-court-data/article_b1106f17-cd71-5245-884e-471d6716a4ed.html) — ACLU lawsuit seeks release of Hartford, Connecticut immigration court data - [St Catharines Standard](https://stcatharinesstandard.ca/news/world/united-states/aclu-lawsuit-seeks-release-of-hartford-connecticut-immigration-court-data/article_1c30ad8c-c68c-5c0b-a3c8-5536cfe2a37c.html) — ACLU lawsuit seeks release of Hartford, Connecticut immigration court data - [NiagaraFallsReview.ca](https://niagarafallsreview.ca/news/world/united-states/aclu-lawsuit-seeks-release-of-hartford-connecticut-immigration-court-data/article_aaff19ce-97f0-5b5b-837f-fc89353fa3f3.html) — ACLU lawsuit seeks release of Hartford, Connecticut immigration court data - [Winnipeg Free Press](https://winnipegfreepress.com/world/2026/09/11/aclu-lawsuit-seeks-release-of-hartford-connecticut-immigration-court-data) — ACLU lawsuit seeks release of Hartford, Connecticut immigration court data - [The CT Mirror](https://ctmirror.org/2026/09/10/aclu-lawsuit-hartford-immigration-court-data) — ACLU lawsuit seeks release of Hartford immigration court data ## Questions **What is the ACLU suing the Hartford immigration court over?** The Connecticut chapter of the ACLU has filed a federal lawsuit alleging that the Hartford immigration court is withholding access to basic immigration court records. The group claims this information should be publicly accessible under the First Amendment, not solely through the Freedom of Information Act. **Who is named in the lawsuit?** The lawsuit names U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche and the chief immigration judge for the Hartford court, Angela Munson, as defendants. **What specific records did the ACLU request?** The ACLU-CT requested docket numbers, case captions, and 'in absentia' removal orders for the period of May 2026 through July 2026. They stated they made this request twice without receiving a response. --- MediaBias News — https://mediabias.news. Reproduced from https://mediabias.news/politics/aclu-sues-hartford-immigration-court-over-access-to-records. Please cite as: MediaBias News, "ACLU sues Hartford immigration court over access to records", https://mediabias.news/politics/aclu-sues-hartford-immigration-court-over-access-to-records