Appointed September 1994 · President Bill Clinton→ Attorney General Janet Reno(AG inferred from date)
31 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Democratic administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge LaMonte S. Freerks earned a Bachelor of Arts in 1977 from Northwestern College and a Juris Doctor in 1980 from the University of Iowa College of Law. Before his appointment, he served as a staff attorney for the Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project (1991-1994) and as a staff attorney for the Border Association for Refugees from Central America in Edinburg, Texas (1989-1991).
Caseload & process (since 2021)
854
Completions per year
4,271 total
1%
Detained at decision
share of cases
13.9 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
15.3%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
8.4%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
78.8%
Appeals remanded or reversed
146 appeals decided
Bond decisions
Custody redetermination (bond) rulings since 2021.
"Granted" means the judge lowered the bond, ordered release on recognizance, or otherwise granted the request.
40%⚠
Bond requests granted
10 bond decisions Too few cases
$15,000
Median bond when set
4 bonds with amounts
0%
Released on own recognizance
This judge 40%
National 41.9% · median $6,500
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
30.5%
236 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
5.4%
334 decisions High confidence
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
58.3%
127 decisions Moderate
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
33.3%⚠
6 decisions Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
96.8%
62 decisions Moderate
Voluntary departure
73.6%
129 decisions Moderate
30.5%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 236 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
30.5%
This court
13.6%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the top 44% of the 825 judges nationally with enough cases to compare.
Does a lawyer matter here?
Asylum grant rate by whether the person had legal representation.
With a lawyerrepresented · 209 decisions since 2021
34%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 27 decisions since 2021
3.7%
Asylum grant rate over time
Each point is that calendar year's grant rate, back to 2015 where the judge was deciding cases — the longer career view. Dashed grey line = current national average (31.8%). Headline rates above use 2021 – today.
Courts where this judge has decided cases
Hearing locations for cases this judge completed since 2021, by number of decisions.
Many judges hear cases from more than one court (detained facilities, video dockets, or reassignments).