New York · est. 2013Friday, September 4, 2026
Inside Immigration

Plain-language guides to US immigration, asylum and USCIS procedure.

Immigration judges

Patrick M. McKenna

Immigration Judge, Chicago Immigration Court. Appointed August 2018 by Jeff Sessions.

Asylum record, FY 2021-2026

TRAC source →
Judge McKenna57.1%
Chicago court49.0%
All judges nationally62.9%
Decisions on the merits
1,100
Asylum granted
431
Other relief granted
41
Denied
628
Against own court
+8.1 pts
Denial rate by fiscal year
FY21FY22FY23FY24FY25FY26
41%29%36%23%75%87%

Read from TRAC's chart to the nearest point. Years with fewer than 25 decisions are not shown.

Docket

Respondents represented by counsel: 88% (nationally, 81% are represented).

Most common nationalities: Mexico (15.9%), Guatemala (15.8%), Venezuela (14.5%), Honduras (13.6%), Nicaragua (8.7%).

Official biography

Attorney General Jeff Sessions appointed Patrick M. McKenna to begin hearing cases in August 2018. Judge McKenna ear ned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1998 from DePauw University and a Juris Doctor in 2001 from University of Notre Dame Law School. From 2006 to 2018, he was assistant chief counsel and associate legal advisor for Immigration and Customs Enforcement,Department of Homeland Security, in Chicago and Washington, D.C. From 2002 to 2006, hewas assistant state's attorney for the Will County State's Attorney in Joliet, Ill. From 2001 to2002, he was an associate with Eichorn and Eichorn in Hammond, Ind. Judge McKenna is am ember of the Illinois and Indiana State Bars.

As published by the Executive Office for Immigration Review at appointment, via TRAC.

In the record

No published reporting or appellate decisions naming this judge have been collected yet.

Other judges at Chicago

Court page →

About these figures. Denial rates describe outcomes in the cases a judge happened to hear, which differ by detention, nationality and representation. They are not a measure of fairness or competence. Method and sources are on the judges index.