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‘The system is complete mess,’ John Oliver says about immigration courts

Warning: Video contains objectionable language

The immigration court system needs to be overhauled, John Oliver said on the latest episode of “Last Week Tonight.”

Oliver spent 20 minutes addressing the topic on his Sunday night show.

He noted that the case backlog in the nation’s 60 or so immigration courts has soared to over 600,000 — more than twice that in 2009. In one immigration court, he said, there was a five-year backlog for cases to be heard.

Oliver also argued that immigration courts should be under the judicial branch and not the Justice Department, which currently oversees the system.

Almost two-thirds of defendants in the courts don’t have legal representation, Oliver said.

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Sean Smyth can be reached at sean.smyth@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @smythsays.