Federal judge rules ICE can’t lock up everyone facing deportation

The Trump administration reversed decades of immigration policy last summer when it determined that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) must lock up everyone facing deportation, even if they’ve lived in the country for decades and have no criminal record.

But on Tuesday, a federal court in Nevada ruled against the policy, saying it violates federal law and causes “irreparable harm” to those who are arrested. The decision, issued by U.S. District Judge Richard Boulware II, is the first time a class-action lawsuit in Nevada has overturned a Department of Homeland Security policy, and it could affect hundreds of people, allowing upward of 60 people per week to seek release in Nevada.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada, one of the petitioners in the case, said the decision  could allow potentially thousands of immigration detainees to seek release on bail and applies to qualifying immigrants throughout the state.

The ruling signals a massive success for immigration advocates in Nevada, who have been pushing back against increasing local government collaboration with ICE. Since President Donald Trump has stepped back into office, immigration arrests have skyrocketed in Nevada, and most of those arrested have not had a violent criminal past. The state is also home to one of the most over-capacity detention centers in the country.

“The decision is enormously consequential,” Athar Haseebullah, the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada, said in an interview with The Nevada Independent. “If this decision holds, people will have the opportunity to be back with their families.”

How it works

The Trump administration has touted the policy — known as “mandatory detention” — as key to its mass deportation campaign. The rule doesn’t just subject more people to detention while they fight deportation but bars them from asking an immigration judge to consider releasing them on bond. More than 100 judges nationwide have ruled against it, deeming it a violation of due process rights as it prevents people from contesting their detention.

Earlier this week, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with the Trump administration in a similar case, although the ruling would only affect parts of California.

Before the policy’s implementation, individuals who had not committed aggravated felonies or were issued a removal order at the border could seek bond.

Officials from the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately return a request for comment on whether they plan on appealing the decision.

The ruling is already having an impact. Michael Kagan, the director of the UNLV Immigration Clinic, which represents clients facing deportation, said he has already seen bonds being granted this week that would have otherwise been denied. He added that the opportunity for someone to be released on bond can make a huge difference in an individual’s life, allowing them to go home to their families and see their kids again while they wait for more developments in their case.

The decision would allow noncitizens without lawful status or those who are in removal proceedings in Nevada to seek relief. By April 7, the government is required to share notices about the ruling in common areas of detention facilities when people are booked into immigration detention. By April 14, facilities must provide forms to people allowing them to challenge their imprisonment in court — known as a habeas petition.

Kagan added that before the Trump administration implemented the mandatory detention rule, immigration judges routinely denied bond to immigrants they deemed a danger to the public.

“This policy wasn’t about a danger to the public,” Kagan said. “It was just about locking up undocumented immigrants.”

The case was filed by the UNLV Immigration Clinic and ACLU of Nevada in late October on behalf of Victor Ramirez and Edgar Alcantar after they were denied bond hearings. Both arrived in the U.S. as minors and had no criminal convictions. They were both granted bond hearings in November after the suit was filed.