MIAMI (AP) — A U.S. Army Reserve lawyer detailed as a federal immigration judge has been fired barely a month into the job after granting asylum at a high rate out of step with the Trump administration’s mass deportation goals, The Associated Press has learned.

Christopher Day began hearing cases in late October as a temporary judge at the immigration court in Annandale, Virginia. He was fired around Dec. 2, the National Association of Immigration Judges confirmed.

It’s unclear why Day was fired. Day and the Pentagon did not comment when contacted by the AP, and a Justice Department spokeswoman declined to discuss personnel matters.

But federal data from November shows he ruled on asylum cases in ways at odds with the Trump administration’s stated goals.

Of the 11 cases he concluded in November, he granted asylum or some other type of relief allowing the migrant to remain in the United States a total of six times, according to federal data analyzed by Mobile Pathways, a San Francisco-based non profit.

Such favorable outcomes for migrants have become increasingly rare as the Trump administration seeks to slash a massive backlog of 3.8 million asylum cases by radically overhauling the nation’s 75 immigration courts.

As part of that drive, the Trump administration has fired almost 100 judges viewed as too liberal and over the summer eased rules allowing any attorney, regardless of their legal background, to apply to become what recent recruitment ads refer to as a “Deportation Judge.”

In response, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in September approved sending up to 600 military lawyers to hear asylum cases. The goal, migrant advocacy groups say, is to redefine a judge’s traditional duties as a fair, independent arbiter of asylum claims into something akin to a rubber stamp in a robe for the White House’s mass deportation goals.

The American Immigration Lawyers Association has decried the influx of military officers lacking expertise in immigration law, likening them to cardiologists attempting to do a hip replacement. But Pentagon and White House officials have defended the move, saying that a campaign to rule on pending asylum claims was something that all federal workers — as well as migrants sometimes in limbo for years — should rally behind.

So far, only 30 members of the military have been detailed to the immigration courts and for the most part appear to have lived up to the administration’s expectations. Nine out of every 10 migrants whose asylum cases were heard by such judges in November were either ordered removed or requested to self-deport, according to federal data. Overall, the military judges ordered removal 78% of the time compared to 63% for all other judges.

But those like Day, whose rulings countered that trend, are especially vulnerable if it is determined they violated their military duties, said Dana Leigh Marks, a retired immigration judge.

“It is hard to imagine someone being fired so quickly, after five weeks on the bench, unless it was for ideological reasons,” said Marks, the former head of the National Association of Immigration Judges. “It’s especially unfair to military judges because they don’t have the same civil service protections and could face severe consequences for failing in their assignment.”

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Republished with permission of the Associated Press.

Florida’s Department of Environmental Protection is awarding $25 million for 14 projects directly affecting the Indian River Lagoon.

“By focusing on septic-to-sewer conversions, advanced wastewater treatment and stormwater upgrades, these projects are expected to reduce nutrient pollution by an estimated 214,000 pounds of total nitrogen and 23,000 pounds of total phosphorus each year,” DEP asserts.

“Through targeted projects and strong partnerships, we are making tangible progress in restoring the Indian River Lagoon,” said DEP Secretary Alexis A. Lambert. “By improving water quality and habitats, we are protecting the environment while supporting the economic vitality of the communities that rely on the lagoon.”

Grants rolled out this week include the following.

Brevard County’s 100 Quick Connects to Sewer Project will receive $600.000, and its South Beaches Wastewater Treatment Facility Advanced Treatment Conversion Project gets $2,000,000 of funding.

Cocoa’s Septic-to-Sewer Conversion Project Areas J and K will get $5,296,826.

New Smyrna Beach’s Aqua Golf Septic-to-Sewer Conversion Project is in line for $4,310,000 of funding.

Palm Bay’s Septic-to-Sewer Conversion Project – Zone A draws $3,721,422

Four Vero Beach initiatives are in line for funding, including the 27th Avenue Baffle Box Project ($250,000); the Buckinghammock Centralized Sewer Project – Basin 10 ($380,915); the 26th Street Centralized Sewer Project – Basin 12 ($691,329); and the Water Reclamation Facility Project ($3,662,762).

The Fort Pierce Utilities Authority Advanced Wastewater Treatment Construction Project will get $606,438 of state funding, while the Indian River County Department of Utility Services Floravon Shores Sewer Service Connection Project will receive $480,307.

That same department gets $1 million for its Sewer Service Connection Project.

The Indian River Lagoon Council Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program also gets $1,000,000, as does the Ocean Research and Conservation Association, Inc. Kilroy Monitoring Systems Project.

“Effective restoration is about timing and precision,” said Florida’s Chief Science Officer Dr. Mark Rains. “By using data to guide where and when projects are implemented, we can maximize environmental gains and ensure the Indian River Lagoon recovers efficiently and sustainably.”