Qing Lin v. Noem et al

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
11 	HONG QING LIN,
12 	Petitioner,
Case No.: 	26-cv-769-JO-BJW
ORDER GRANTING PETITIONER'S
HABEAS PETITION [DKT. 1]	13 	v.
14 	KRISTI NOEM, et al.,
15 11 	Respondents.
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17 	Petitioner Hong Qing Lin filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus [Dkt. 1]. The
18 11 Court held a hearing on February 17, 2026. The Court finds that it has jurisdiction to
19 11 review Petitioner's constitutional challenges to his detention for the same reasons stated
20 II in its prior decision in Pacheco v. LaRose, No. 3:25-CV-2421-JO-AHG, 2026 WL
21 	11242300 , *2 - *3 (S.D. Cal. Jan. 29, 2026). For additional reasons stated on the record, the
22 11 Court ORDERS as follows:
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(l)Habeas Petition: The Court GRANTS Petitioner's habeas petition [Dkt. 1].
(2) Release: Respondents are ORDERED to release Petitioner by 5 p.m. on
February 18, 2026. Respondents must file a declaration confirming Petitioner's
release by 5 p.m. on February 19, 2026.
(3)Limitations on Removal and Redetention: Respondents are ENJOINED from
removing Petitioner from the United States or from this District, or from
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redetaining him, unless the government (1) has identified a third country willing
to accept Petitioner and (2) has made concrete arrangements for his flight to the
identified third country in the reasonably foreseeable future. 	Respondents shall
file a written declaration with this Court at least 48 hours prior to any
redetention, confirming that they have satisfied the requirements above.
(4)Restrictions on Removal to a Third Country: Respondents are ENJOINED
from removing Petitioner to any country not designated on his order of removal
(i.e., a "third country") unless they comply with all of the following procedures:
a. 	Respondents must provide Petitioner with written notice identifying the
intended country of removal in a language Petitioner understands, and
affirmatively ask whether he fears removal to the country identified in
the notice;
b. 	If Petitioner expresses fear of removal to the identified third country,
Respondents must provide a reasonable fear interview at least 10 days
after issuing the notice, to allow him sufficient time to prepare for the
interview;
c. 	If Respondents determine that Petitioner does have a reasonable fear of
removal to the third country, they must move to reopen his removal
proceedings to permit him to apply for protection from removal to that
third country, including withholding of removal under 8 U.S.C. §
1231 (b )(3) and protection under the Convention Against Torture;
d. 	If Respondents determine that Petitioner does not have a reasonable fear
of removal to the third country, they must provide him a reasonable
period of time to file a motion to reopen with the immigration court or
the Board of Immigration Appeals; and
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e. 	Respondents must file a declaration with this Court confirming that they
have complied with all the procedures listed above at least 7 days prior
to removing Petitioner to any third country in order to provide him an
opportunity to challenge any further unlawful detention.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
8 II Date: February 17, 2026
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OLHonorable Jinsook Ohta
United States District Judge
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