Case Name in Immigration Case - Unavailable

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF MINNESOTA
Rachel M. Engebretson, ENGEBRETSON LAW FIRM, P.A., 989 118 th Avenue
Northeast, Blaine, MN 55434, for Petitioner.
Ana H. Voss, Friedrich A. P. Siekert, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY’S OFFICE,
300 	South 	Fourth 	Street, 	Suite 	600, 	Minneapolis, 	MN 	55415 	for
Respondents.
Petitioner Angel A.S.R. was arrested and detained by United States Immigration
and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) on January 17, 2026. Angel A.S.R. petitions for a writ
of habeas corpus, arguing that he is being detained unlawfully. 	Because the Court
ANGEL A.S.R.,
Petitioner,
v.
KRISTI NOEM, Secretary, U.S. Department
of Homeland Security;
TODD 	M. 	LYONS, 	Acting 	Director 	of
Immigration and Customs Enforcement;
PAMELA BONDI, United States Attorney
General;
DAVID EASTERWOOD, Acting Director, St.
Paul Field Office, U.S. Immigration and
Customs Enforcement; and
JOEL BROTT, Sheriff of Sherburne County,
Respondents.
Civil No. 26-502 (JRT/EMB)
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER
GRANTING PETITION FOR WRIT OF
HABEAS CORPUS
CASE 0:26-cv-00502-JRT-EMB Doc. 8 Filed 01/26/26 Page 1 of 4

-2-
concludes that Angel A.S.R’s detention is unlawful, the Court will grant his petition for
habeas corpus and order that he be released from custody.
BACKGROUND
Angel A.S.R. is a native and citizen of Mexico. (Verified Pet. Writ of Habeas Corpus
(“Pet.”) ¶ 36, Jan. 21, 2026, Docket No. 1.) 	He entered the United States in November
1999 without inspection. (Id. ¶ 37.) On February 4, 2025, United States Citizenship and
Immigration Services issued its renewed prima facie determination on Petitioner’s
Violence 	Against 	Women 	Act 	application, 	and 	Petitioner 	simultaneously 	filed 	an
Application for Adjustment of Status with the Department of Homeland Security, which
is still pending. (Id. ¶ 41.) Petitioner is also a beneficiary of an approved I-130 Immigrant
Petition for Alien Relative, and he has had a I-601A Waiver of Inadmissibility pending since
August 2022. (Id. ¶ 42.) On January 17, 2026, ICE arrested Angel A.S.R. (Id. ¶ 44.) He is
being detained at the Sherburne County Jail in Elk River, Minnesota. (Id. ¶ 46.)
On January 21, 2026, Angel A.S.R. filed a Verified Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus
(Docket No. 1). He alleges that his continued detention is unlawful and requests that the
Court order his immediate release, or alternatively, a bond hearing. (Id. ¶¶ 53–87.) That
same day, the Court issued an order that (1) enjoined Respondents from transferring
Petitioner outside the District of Minnesota pending a ruling on Petitioner’s habeas
petition, and (2) directed Respondents to file an answer by January 24, 2026. (Docket No.
3.)
CASE 0:26-cv-00502-JRT-EMB Doc. 8 Filed 01/26/26 Page 2 of 4

-3-
DISCUSSION
Respondents argue that Angel A.S.R. is subject to mandatory detention under to 8
U.S.C. § 1225(b)(2). After thorough review of the parties’ filings, the Court concludes that
the legal issues presented by Angel A.S.R.’s habeas petition are subject to the same
analysis the Court recently employed in Herrera Avila v. Bondi, No. 25-3741, 2025 WL
2976539 (D. Minn. Oct. 21, 2025) and Romero Santuario v. Bondi, No. 25-4296, 2025 WL
3469577 (D. Minn, Dec. 2, 2025). The factual record before the Court shows that Angel
A.S.R. was arrested while already in the United States. For the same reasons articulated
in Herrera Avila and Romero Santuario, the Court concludes that it possesses jurisdiction
over this petition, and that Angel A.S.R.’s detention is not authorized by § 1225(b)(2).
The Court therefore turns to the proper remedy. In previous cases involving this
issue, the Court has concluded that a bond hearing pursuant to § 1226(a) is the
appropriate remedy. 	However, the Court is now persuaded that where, as here,
(1) Respondents erroneously assert that a detainee is being held pursuant to § 1225(b)(2);
and (2) Respondents have not produced a warrant, as is required to effectuate an arrest
pursuant to § 1226(a), the appropriate remedy is release from custody. See, e.g., Ahmed
M. v. Bondi, No. 25-4711, 2026 WL 25627, at *3 (D. Minn. Jan. 5, 2026); Lauro M. v. Bondi,
No. 26-134, 2026 WL 115022, at *3 (D. Minn. Jan. 15, 2026); cf. Munaf v. Geren, 553 U.S.
674, 693 (2008) (“Habeas is at its core a remedy for unlawful executive detention. . . . The
typical remedy for such detention is, of course, release.”).
CASE 0:26-cv-00502-JRT-EMB Doc. 8 Filed 01/26/26 Page 3 of 4

-4-
Accordingly, the Court will grant Angel A.S.R.’s petition for writ of habeas corpus
and will order that he be released from custody.
ORDER
Based on the foregoing, and all the files, records, and proceedings herein, IT IS
HEREBY ORDERED that:
1. 	Petitioner Angel A.S.R.’s Verified Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus (Docket No.
[1]) is GRANTED, as follows:
a. 	Petitioner 	is 	not 	subject 	to 	mandatory 	detention 	under 	8 	U.S.C.
§ 1225(b)(2).
b. 	Respondents shall release Petitioner from custody as soon as practicable,
and no later than 48 hours from the filing of this Order.
c. 	The parties shall provide the Court with a status update concerning the
status of Petitioner’s release by no later than 5:00 p.m. on January 28,
2026. 	Further, the parties shall advise the Court whether any additional
proceedings in this matter are required and submit any proposals for the
scope of further litigation.
DATED: January 26, 2026 	_____/s/ Johnn R. Tunheim ____
at Minneapolis, Minnesota 	JOHN R. TUNHEIM
at 10:40 A.M. 	United States District Judge
CASE 0:26-cv-00502-JRT-EMB Doc. 8 Filed 01/26/26 Page 4 of 4