Vilar Ruiz v. Noem et al

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS
HOUSTON DIVISION
ZULEMA VILAR RUIZ, §
§
§
§
§
§
§
§
§
§
Petitioner,
VS. CIVIL ACTION NO. 4:26-1307
WARDEN, MONTGOMERY
PROCESSING CENTER, et al.
Respondents.
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER
GRANTING WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS
Petitioner Zulema Vilar Ruiz is detained in the custody of officials with Immigration
and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Through counsel, the petitioner filed a petition for a writ
of habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2241 (Dkt. 1). She also has filed a motion for an
expedited ruling (Dkt. 9).
The petition and supporting documents state that the petitioner is a national and
citizen of Cuba; that she entered the United States on November 30, 2021, and has
continuously resided in the country since that date; that she was detained on November 13,
2025, when she appeared for a scheduled check-in appointment; that before her detention
she was steadily employed; that she has family and community ties and does not pose a
flight risk; that she has no history of violence and no criminal record; and that officials
have not provided her with an individualized custody determination. She brings claims
under the INA, the Due Process Clause, the Administrative Procedure Act, the Equal
United States District Court
Southern District of Texas
ENTERED
June 12, 2026
Nathan Ochsner, Clerk
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Protection Clause, the Suspension Clause, and the Accardi doctrine. She seeks immediate
release and return of her documents, among other relief.
The federal respondents filed a motion to dismiss the petition or, in the alternative,
for summary judgment (Dkt. 7), arguing that the petitioner is subject to mandatory
detention under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b) and that her remaining claims fail. They do not contest
the facts recited above and state that the petitioner applied for political asylum on or about
October 14, 2025, before her current detention. They additionally present a Notice to
Appear dated November 26, 2025; an I-213 form dated November 14, 2025; and a warrant
for the petitioner’s arrest dated November 13, 2025 (Dkt. 7-1; Dkt. 7-2; Dkt. 7-3). These
documents confirm that the petitioner was previously released on her own recognizance
and has no criminal history (Dkt. 7-2, at 4). The petitioner responded (Dkt. 8).
The immigration courts’ public website reflects that an immigration judge ordered
the petitioner removed on May 20, 2026, after the briefing in this case was complete, and
that her appeal to the Bureau of Immigration Appeals (BIA) is not yet due. See EOIR
Automated Case Information, available at https://acis.eoir.justice.gov/en/ (last visited June
10, 2026).
On February 6, 2026, the Fifth Circuit held in Buenrostro-Mendez v. Bondi, 166
F.4th 494 (5th Cir. 2026), that two petitioners who has been present in the United States
for many years, and who had not been apprehended by immigration officials before the
detention at issue in the case, were subject to mandatory detention under 8 U.S.C.
§ 1225(b)(2). The Court does not base this opinion on the statutory text but instead turns
to the petitioner’s claim that her current detention violates her rights rights under the Due
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Process Clause. The Court has previously addressed due-process claims in the context of
28 U.S.C. § 2241. See, e.g., Avila Perez v. Warden, Civil Action No. 4:26-957 (S.D. Tex.
Apr. 28, 2026); Gonzalez Monrreal v. Warden, Civil Action No. 4:26-925 (S.D. Tex. Apr.
27, 2026); Barrera Leon v. Warden, Civil Action No. 4:26-1341 (S.D. Tex. Apr. 2, 2026);
Gallegos Perez v. Noem, Civil Action No. 4:26-351 (S.D. Tex. Apr. 2, 2026); Cruz Osorio
v. Noem, Civil Action No. 4:25-6390 (S.D. Tex. Apr. 2, 2026); Rozo-Teran v. Bondi, Civil
Action No. 4:26-243 (S.D. Tex. Mar. 16, 2026); Navarette-Garcia v. Bradford, Civil
Action No. 4:26-1503 (S.D. Tex. Mar, 16, 2026); Delgado-Rodriguez v. Tate, Civil Action
No. 4:26-650, 2026 WL 517983 (S.D. Tex. Feb. 25, 2026).
The Constitution guarantees due process of law to every person in the United States,
regardless of the person’s immigration status. Zadvydas v. Davis, 533 U.S. 678, 693 (2001)
(the Due Process Clause “applies to all ‘persons’ within the United States, including aliens,
whether their presence here is lawful, unlawful, temporary, or permanent”); see A.A.R.P. v
Trump, 605 U.S. 91, 94 (2025) (procedural due process protections apply to removal
proceedings for persons detained under the Alien Enemies Act).
The Court notes at the outset that the petitioner in this case challenges only her
detention, and not her right to relief from deportation or removal. Courts across the country
have recognized that as-applied due process challenges to detention without an
individualized hearing are not foreclosed by Dep’t of Homeland Sec. v. Thuraissigiam, 591
U.S. 103 (2020), or other Supreme Court precedent.1 Lopez-Campos v. Raycraft, 175
1 In Thuraissigiam, the Supreme Court held that a noncitizen seeking “initial entry” to the
United States enjoys only the rights provided by statute because the “power to admit or exclude
aliens is a sovereign prerogative” over which the political branches have plenary authority.
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F.4th 713, 732-34 (6th Cir. 2026); Vieira v. De Anda-Ybarra, 806 F. Supp. 3d 690, 697-
700 (W.D. Tex. 2025); Lopez-Arevelo v. Ripa, 801 F. Supp. 3d 668, 681-85 (W.D. Tex.
2025); Bonilla Chicas v. Warden, No. 5:26-CV-00131, 2026 WL 539475, at *11 (S.D. Tex.
Feb. 20, 2026); Castro Coneo v. Almodovar, No. 25-CV-09850 (NSR), 2025 WL 3754079,
at *5 (S.D.N.Y. Dec. 29, 2025); Destino v. FCI Berlin, Warden, No. 1:25-CV-374-SE-AJ,
2025 WL 4010424, at *4 n.6 (D.N.H. Dec. 24, 2025) (noting a “growing consensus” among
district courts and collecting cases); Rincon, 2025 WL 3122784, at *5-*7. Many cases
cited above also distinguish Jennings v. Rodriguez, 583 U.S. 281 (2018), and Demore v.
Kim, 538 U.S. 510 (2003), from the detention challenge at issue in this case. See, e.g.,
Lopez-Campos, 175 F.4th at 734; Rodriguez v. Frink, ___ F. Supp. 3d. ___, No. 4:26-CV-
00798, 2026 WL 709487, at *2-4 (S.D. Tex. Mar. 13, 2026); Bonillas Chicas, 2026 WL
539475, at *7-*9; Destino, 2025 WL 4010424, at *3-*8; Rincon, 2025 WL 3122784, at *4-
*8.2 The Court agrees with this consensus and thus proceeds to review the petitioner’s
Thuraissigiam, 591 U.S. at 139-40 (cleaned up) (considering case regarding noncitizen detained
25 yards from the border and for whom immigration officials rejected his “credible fear” claim for
purposes of political asylum). However, a challenge to detention, rather than to immigration
proceedings, does not implicate the “sovereign prerogative” on which Thuraissigiam relies. See
Rincon v. Hyde, No. CV 25-12633-BEM, 2025 WL 3122784, at *5-*6 (D. Mass. Nov. 7, 2025)
(discussing “entry fiction” doctrine and its purposes).
2 In Demore, the Supreme Court considered a facial challenge to 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c), a
statutory provision that provides for mandatory detention of non-citizens who have been convicted
of certain crimes, and held that the facial challenge failed. In so holding, the Court discussed
extensively the fact that Congress enacted § 1226(c) based on evidence of increasing criminal
activity by criminal aliens, as well as high rates of recidivism and flight. Demore, 538 U.S. at 518-
19. The Court also relied on the fact that a detainee under § 1226(c) was a “criminal alien” who
was detained for “the limited period of his removal proceedings.” Id. at 531; see id. at 529-31
(citing facts in the record showing that detention under § 1226(c) lasted for an average of 47 days,
and that 100% of the detentions lasted five months or less). Finally, the Court noted that the
detainee in Demore had been afforded procedural protections, including “the full procedural
protections our criminal justice system offers” for his prior convictions and the opportunity for a
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constitutional claim.3
When adjudicating a procedural due-process claim from a civil detainee, courts
apply the three-part test from Mathews v. Eldridge, weighing and balancing the following
factors: (1) the private interest that will be affected by the official action; (2) the risk of an
erroneous deprivation of such interest through the procedures used, and the probable value,
if any, of additional or substitute procedural safeguards; and, (3) the Government’s interest,
including the function involved and the fiscal and administrative burdens that the additional
or substitute procedural requirement would entail. Mathews v. Eldridge, 424 U.S. 319, 335
(1976).
Regarding the first Mathews factor, the petitioner has a liberty interest that the Due
Process Clause protects. Freedom from physical detention is “the most elemental of liberty
interests.” Hamdi v. Rumsfeld, 542 U.S. 507, 529 (2004); see Zadvydas, 533 U.S. at 690.
A noncitizen who has lived for years in the interior of the United States and established
connections in the country acquires a protectible liberty interest. Thuraissigiam, 591 U.S.
at 107 (“aliens who have established connections in this country have due process rights in
deportation proceedings”); United States v. Verdugo-Urquidez, 494 U.S. 259, 271 (1990)
(“aliens receive constitutional protections when they have come within the territory of the
United States and developed substantial connections with this country”); Landon v.
“Joseph hearing” at which he would have been entitled to raise any non-frivolous argument to
demonstrate that he was not properly included in the mandatory detention category. Id. at 513-14
& n.3.
3 See also I.N.S. v. St. Cyr, 533 U.S. 289, 304–05 (2001) (“a serious Suspension Clause issue
would be presented” if a statute deprived federal courts of habeas jurisdiction to review “pure
questions of law”).
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Plasencia, 459 U.S. 21, 34 (1982) (noncitizen has a “weighty” interest in his or her right
“to stay and live and work in this land of freedom” and to “rejoin . . . immediate family”).
As stated above, the petitioner has lived in the United States since 2021, has no
criminal history, and has applied for political asylum. Her appeal to the BIA from her
order of removal is not yet due. Moreover, the respondents previously released her from
detention on her own recognizance. Her current detention began in November 2025, when
she appeared as instructed for a check-in appointment at ICE, and the respondents do not
point to any condition of release she violated or other changed circumstance justifying her
re-detention. Therefore, the petitioner acquired a protected liberty interest before the
detention challenged in this case. See Thuraissigiam, 591 U.S. at 107; Vieira, 806 F. Supp.
3d at 700; Gunaydin v. Trump, 784 F.Supp.3d 1175, 1187 (D. Minn. 2025); Lopez-Arevelo,
801 F. Supp. 3d. at 685-86; Destino, 2025 WL 4010424, at *12; Barros v. Noem, No. EP-
25-CV-488-KC, 2025 WL 3154059, at *4 (W.D. Tex. Nov. 10, 2025). The first factor
weighs heavily in the petitioner’s favor.
The second Mathews factor is the risk of an erroneous deprivation of the petitioner’s
liberty interest by the procedures used for her detention as well as the probable value of
additional safeguards. “Once it is determined that due process applies, the question
remains what process is due.” Morrissey v. Brewer, 408 U.S. 471, 481 (1972). Due process
requires adequate procedural protections to weigh the governmental interest against that of
the individual. See Zadvydas, 533 U.S. at 690 (“[G]overnment detention violates [the Due
Process] Clause unless the detention is ordered in a criminal proceeding with adequate
procedural protections or, in certain special and narrow[,] nonpunitive circumstances
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where a special justification, such as harm-threatening mental illness, outweighs the
individual’s constitutionally protected interest in avoiding physical restraint”) (cleaned up).
“Due process is flexible and calls for such procedural protections as the particular situation
demands.” Mathews, 424 U.S. at 334 (cleaned up). Immigrant detainees “are entitled to
notice and opportunity to be heard appropriate to the nature of the case.” Trump v. J. G.
G., 604 U.S. 670, 673 (2025) (cleaned up); see Lopez-Campos, 174 F.4th at 732 (“The
hallmark of procedural due process is notice and an opportunity to be heard”) (cleaned up).
The respondents argue that the petitioner’s claim should be denied based on
Demore, 538 U.S. 510, which rejected a facial due-process challenge to a different statute,
8 U.S.C. § 1226(c). However, the Court does not consider in this case whether
§ 1225(b)(2) is facially unconstitutional, that is, “unconstitutional in all of its applications.”
See United States v. Morgan, 147 F.4th 522, 526 (5th Cir. 2025), cert. denied, No. 25-6677,
2026 WL 568341 (U.S. Mar. 2, 2026) (cleaned up); Bonillas Chicas, 2026 WL 539475, at
*6. Instead, the Court considers whether § 1225(b)(2), “though constitutional in some
circumstances,” has been unconstitutionally applied to the petitioner. See Morgan, 147
F.4th at 526.4
4 Apart from the fact that it decided a facial challenge, Demore is distinguishable for
additional reasons. First, the statute at issue in Demore applied to a specific subset of non-citizens
convicted of certain crimes. See 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c). In contrast, § 1225(b)(2) is a broad, “catch-
all” provision. Buenrostro-Mendez, 166 F.4th at 499 (citing Jennings, 583 U.S. at 287); see id. at
505 (holding that, although “[i]t is true that § 1226 applies to aliens in the United States,” the
application of § 1226 “does not preclude § 1225 from also applying to such aliens” because “the
two provisions overlap”). Moreover, as stated above, the Demore petitioners had received criminal
procedural protections, as well as the opportunity for a Joseph hearing, and were detained for an
average of 47 days. In the case at bar, however, the petitioner has received no procedures to protect
the liberty interest impacted by her current detention, and nothing in the record suggests that the
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Civil detention can be permissible based on the government’s showing that the
person is a danger to the community. See, e.g., United States v. Salerno, 481 U.S. 739,
746, 748-49 (1987) (the government’s regulatory interest in community safety can
outweigh an individual’s liberty interest in avoiding pre-trial detention if the person poses
a danger) (collecting cases). In such cases, the civil detention must be “limited” and
“subject to strong procedural protections.” Zadvydas, 533 U.S. at 691; see Kansas v.
Hendricks, 521 U.S. 346, 357(1997) (“We have consistently upheld [forcible civil
detainment of persons who pose a danger to public health and safety] provided the
confinement takes place pursuant to proper procedures and evidentiary standards”);
Salerno, 481 U.S. at 750 (upholding bail reform statute which required the government,
“[i]n a full-blown adversary hearing,” to “convince a neutral decisionmaker by clear and
convincing evidence that no conditions of release can reasonably assure the safety of the
community or any person”).
Here, the petitioner has been detained since November 13, 2025, or approximately
seven months, and the respondents provide no information about when the detention will
end. Moreover, the respondents have made no showing that her current civil detention is
justified by her danger to the community, flight risk, or any other weighty government
interest, and do not contest the petitioner’s statement that she has no criminal record.
length of detention will be limited. Finally, unlike in Demore, nothing in the record in this case
suggests that the petitioner’s detention under § 1225(b)(2) is justified by evidence of danger to the
community. For all of these reasons, Demore does not foreclose the petitioner’s as-applied
challenge. See Bonilla Chicas, 2026 WL 539475, at *7-*9 (distinguishing Demore); Destino, 2025
WL 4010424, at *8-*9 (distinguishing Demore); Rincon, 2025 WL 3122784, at *7-*8
(distinguishing Demore).
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Rather, they argue that danger and flight risk are irrelevant under the plain language of
§ 1225(b)(2), thus ending the inquiry (Dkt. 7, at 6-8 (citing Conn. Dep’t of Pub. Safety v.
Doe, 538 U.S. 1 (2003)). However, the question of whether procedural safeguards for the
petitioner’s liberty interest are adequate is a constitutional question, not a statutory one,
and a statute may not deprive a person of rights that are constitutionally guaranteed.
Cleveland Bd. of Educ. v. Loudermill, 470 U.S. 532, 541 (1985); Palm Valley Health Care,
Inc. v. Azar, 947 F.3d 321, 326 (5th Cir. 2020) (“the Constitution, not statutes, determine
the minimum procedures that due process requires”).5 They identify no procedures
afforded to the petitioner to provide notice, an opportunity to be heard, or any
5 Moreover, Doe is distinguishable on several grounds. The plaintiff in Doe challenged a
Connecticut statute that mandated registry of sex offenders based only on the person’s past
conviction for a sex offense, arguing that the registry requirement without a hearing to show he
was currently dangerous violated his procedural due process rights. The Supreme Court held that,
because current dangerousness was irrelevant under the statute, the plaintiff had no procedural due
process right to a hearing. The Court joins other courts in holding that Doe is distinguishable from
the facts and issues in this case. See, e.g., Aliaga Zamora v. Bondi, No. SA-26-CA-00447-XR,
2026 WL 693054, at *5 (W.D. Tex. Mar. 10, 2026); Betancourth v. Tate, No. 4:26-CV-01169,
2026 WL 638482, at *2 & n.4 (S.D. Tex. Mar. 6, 2026); Noyola v. Bondi, No. 1:26-CV-405-RP,
2026 WL 607266, at *3 (W.D. Tex. Mar. 4, 2026); Diaz Yanez v. Bondi, No. EP-26-CV-00486-
DB, 2026 WL 690005, at *2 (W.D. Tex. Mar. 4, 2026); Villegas Angel v. Noem, No. 1:26-CV-
00384-DAE, 2026 WL 594368, at *3-4 (W.D. Tex. Mar. 3, 2026). First, the petitioner in this case
does not challenge a registry requirement, which the Doe Court assumed arguendo implicated a
liberty interest, but rather freedom from physical detention, “the most elemental of liberty
interests.” Hamdi, 542 U.S. at 529. Second, civil immigration detention is constitutional only
when it is justified by a sufficient, non-punitive purpose. Foucha v. La., 504 U.S. 71, 80 (1992);
Betancourth, 2026 WL 638482, at *2 n.4; Diaz Yanez, 2026 WL 690005, at *2. Once a protected
interest is implicated, “the right to some kind of prior hearing is paramount.” Aliaga Zamora, 2026
WL 693054, at *5 (citing, inter alia, Bd. of Regents v. Roth, 408 U.S. 564, 569–70 (1972)); Villegas
Angel, 2026 WL 594368, at *3. Third, the statutory language indicates that flight risk and danger
are not irrelevant to detention under § 1225(b), given that “noncitizens who are detained under
§ 1225(b) may be released on parole for humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit, so long
as they present neither a security risk nor a risk of absconding.” Noyola, 2026 WL 607266, at *3
(cleaned up) (citing 8 U.S.C. § 1182(d)(5)(A); 8 C.F.R. § 212.5(b)); Aguilar v. Bondi, No. 5:25-
CV-01453-JKP, 2025 WL 3471417, at *1 n.1 (W.D. Tex. Nov. 26, 2025).
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individualized determination regarding her current detention. To the extent the respondents
rely on the Notice to Appear dated November 26, 2025 (Dkt. 7-1), this document does not
adequately address the petitioner’s presence in the United States for over four years and
the liberty interest she acquired during that time based on established connections in the
country. See Thuraissigiam, 591 U.S. at 107; Verdugo-Urquidez, 494 U.S. at 271; Landon,
459 U.S. at 34. It also does not show that the petitioner was afforded notice and an
opportunity to be heard as to the justification for her detention. See J.G.G., 604 U.S. at
673 (immigrant detainees “are entitled to notice and opportunity to be heard appropriate to
the nature of the case”) (cleaned up); Lopez-Campos, 175 F.4th at 732.
In the absence of any available procedure to require the respondents to demonstrate
danger or another adequate justification for detention, the risk of an erroneous deprivation
of the petitioner’s liberty interest is high. See Roth, 408 U.S. at 569–70 & n.7 (“When
protected interests are implicated, the right to some kind of prior hearing is paramount”)
(citing, inter alia, Boddie v. Connecticut, 401 U.S. 371, 379 (1971); Bell v. Burson, 402
U.S. 535, 542 (1971)). When “the only mechanism Petitioner has to test the propriety of
his detention is DHS’s discretionary authority,” that is “no real test at all.” Tenemasa-
Lema v. Hyde, No. CV 25-13029-BEM, 2025 WL 3280555, at *9 (D. Mass. Nov. 25,
2025); see Destino, 2025 WL 4010424, at *13 (noting that the risk is heightened by the
likelihood of lengthy delays in removal proceedings). This risk of deprivation could be
addressed through an individualized assessment such as the bond hearings that
respondents, until late 2025, routinely provided to assess a petitioner’s danger to
community and flight risk. See Mathews, 424 U.S. at 335 (courts should assess whether
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“additional or substitute procedural safeguards” would have “probable value”); Lopez-
Arevelo, 801 F. Supp. 3d at 686 (an individualized hearing would provide an opportunity
to be heard and a meaningful assessment of the petitioner’s dangerousness and flight risk,
and thus would “greatly reduce the risk of an erroneous deprivation of his liberty”); Barros,
2025 WL 3154059, at *4 (risk of erroneous deprivation “can be easily ameliorated through
a bond hearing”). The Court concludes that the second Mathews factor weighs in the
petitioner’s favor.
The third Mathews factor is the respondents’ interest in the petitioner’s mandatory,
unreviewable detention at issue here. The respondents have not addressed this factor and
do not argue their interest in detaining the petitioner under § 1225(b). To the extent the
respondents rely on their general interest in enforcing the statute, their interest is
insufficient to extinguish the petitioner’s right to due process. See Loudermill, 470 U.S.
at 541; Rincon, 2025 WL 3122784, at *6 (“legislation cannot detract from the privilege
afforded by the constitution”) (cleaned up) (quoting Counselman v. Hitchcock, 142 U.S.
547, 565 (1892), overruled on other grounds by Kastigar v. United States, 406 U.S. 441
(1972)). Although courts have recognized a legitimate governmental interest in preventing
a detainee’s flight and in protecting the community from any danger posed by the detainee,
see, e.g., Gunaydin, 784 F. Supp. 3d at 1189, these interests could be addressed by
providing individualized hearings, as discussed above.6 Moreover, to the extent the purpose
6 Courts “generally have found that the cost of providing a bond hearing is relatively
minimal.” Hilario M.R. v. Warden, Mesa Verde Det. Ctr., 2025 WL 1158841, at *9 (E.D. Cal.
Apr. 21, 2025); see Tenemasa-Lema, 2025 WL 3280555, at *10. Additionally, courts have
recognized that detention itself imposes significant costs and burdens. See Hernandez-Lara v.
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of the detention is punitive, the purpose is impermissible in the context of civil immigration
proceedings. See Foucha, 504 U.S. at 80. The respondents have not contested the
petitioner’s facts, including that she has no criminal record, strong family and community
ties, and is pursuing relief from removal. The third factor therefore weighs in the
petitioner’s favor.
Because all three Mathews factors weigh in the petitioner’s favor, she is detained
without due process of law. The Court concludes, in accordance with numerous other
courts considering the question, that detention under § 1225(b)(2) as applied to this
petitioner, without an individualized assessment or any notice or opportunity to be heard,
violates the petitioner’s right to procedural due process. The petition for a writ of habeas
corpus will be granted. 28 U.S.C. § 2241; 28 U.S.C. § 2243; see Brown v. Davenport, 596
U.S. 118, 128 (2022) (“federal courts may grant habeas relief as law and justice require”)
(cleaned up).
“Habeas is at its core a remedy for unlawful executive detention.” Munaf v. Geren,
553 U.S. 674, 693 (2008). The remedy for unlawful detention “is, of course, release.” Id.;
see Preiser v. Rodriguez, 411 U.S. 475, 484 (1973) (based on statutory language of 28
Lyons, 10 F.4th 19, 33 (1st Cir. 2021) (noting the “substantial social costs” of detention that
separates families and removes breadwinners, caregivers, parents, siblings, and employees from
the community); Rodriguez, 2026 WL 709487, at *10 (“Indeed, given the high costs of detention
and the potential for removal proceedings to last multiple years, the Government would reduce its
overall fiscal and administrative burden by detaining only those people who have been determined
to pose a danger or flight risk”) (citing Black v. Decker, 103 F.4th 133, 154 (2d Cir. 2024);
Sampiao v. Hyde, 799 F. Supp. 3d 14, 34 (D. Mass. 2025) (noting that detention of those who have
been denied release on bond or the opportunity to seek release “requires the government to
continue funding and overseeing [the petitioner’s] detention”).
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U.S.C. § 2241(c)(3) and the common-law history of the writ, “the essence of habeas corpus
is an attack by a person in custody upon the legality of that custody, and that the traditional
function of the writ is to secure release from illegal custody”). Because the respondents do
not acknowledge any process available to the petitioner, “there is no process to await.” See
Aroca v. Mason, No. 2:26-CV-00057, 2026 WL 357872, at *19 (S.D.W. Va. Feb. 9, 2026)
(cleaned up) (collecting cases).7 After reviewing the authorities and all matters of record,
the Court determines that release is the appropriate habeas relief for the unlawful detention
in this case.
The Court therefore ORDERS as follows:
1. The respondents’ motion to dismiss or for summary judgment (Dkt. 7) is
DENIED.
2. The petitioner’s petition for habeas relief (Dkt. 1) is GRANTED in part.
3. The respondents are ORDERED to RELEASE the petitioner from custody to a
public location, under conditions of release no more restrictive than those in
place prior to the detention at issue in this case, within 48 hours of this order.
4. The respondents are further ORDERED to inform the petitioner and petitioner’s
counsel of the time and location of release at least three hours before the
release.
7 In light of the Fifth Circuit’s holding in Buenrostro-Mendez, and because the respondents
do not argue that 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) applies, the Court does not order a bond hearing under
§ 1226(a). See Ahmed M. v. Bondi, No. 25-CV-4711 (ECT/SGE), 2026 WL 25627, at *3 (D.
Minn. Jan. 5, 2026) (collecting cases).
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5. The respondents are further ORDERED to return to the petitioner, at the time
of her release from custody, any and all identification documents taken from her
at the time of or during her detention.
6. Any possible or anticipated removal or transfer of the petitioner under this
present detention is PROHIBITED and ENJOINED.
7. The respondents may not re-detain the petitioner during the pendency of her
removal proceedings absent a pre-detention hearing before an immigration judge
at which the government demonstrates, by clear and convincing evidence, that
she is a flight risk or a danger to the community. See Giri v. Lyons, No. 5:26-
CV-00149, ___ F. Supp. 3d _____, 2026 WL 1361557, at *13 (S.D. Tex. May
12, 2026) (collecting authorities).
8. The respondents are further ORDERED to file a status report updating the Court
within 72 hours of this order.
9. All other pending motions, to the extent not granted above, are DENIED as
moot.
The Clerk will provide a copy of this order to the parties.
SIGNED at Houston, Texas, on , 2026.
__________________________________
GEORGE C. HANKS, JR.
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
June 12
Case 4:26-cv-01307 Document 10 Filed 06/12/26 in TXSD Page 14 of 14