Case Name in Immigration Case - Unavailable

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF NEW MEXICO
FRANCISCO GONZALES-TREJO,
Petitioner,
v.
Case No. 1:26-cv-01680-MIS-GBW
GEORGE DEDOS, Warden of Torrance County
Detention Center; MARY DE ANDA-YBARRA, El
Paso Field Office Director, Enforcement and
Removal Operations, U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement; TODD LYONS, Acting Director of
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement;
MARKWAYNE MULLIN, Secretary of the U.S.
Department of Homeland Security; and TODD
BLANCHE, Acting U.S. Attorney General,
Respondents.
ORDER GRANTING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS
THIS MATTER is before the Court on Petitioner Francisco Gonzales-Trejo’s Petition for
Writ of Habeas Corpus (“Petition”), ECF No. 1, filed May 26, 2026. Petitioner is a citizen of
Mexico who has resided in the United States since June 14, 2005. Id. ¶ 17. He is married to a
U.S. citizen and is the father of three U.S. citizen children, ages 11, 2, and 1. Id. ¶ 3. He is the
primary provider and caretaker for his family. Id. He has no criminal record. Id. ¶ 5.
Nevertheless, on November 4, 2026, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”)
agents arrested Petitioner in at his home in Florida. Id. ¶ 7. He is currently being detained by ICE
at the Torrance County Detention Center in Estancia, New Mexico. Id. ¶ 8.
On May 26, 2026, Petitioner filed the instant Petition arguing that his detention is governed
by 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a), and his detention without an individualized custody determination violates
the Immigration and Nationality Act (“INA”) and the Fifth Amendment’s Due Process and Equal
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Protection Clauses. Id. ¶¶ 22-71. He requests a writ of habeas corpus requiring that Respondents
immediately release him from ICE custody subject to reasonable conditions of release or,
alternatively, provide him a bond hearing. Id. at 15-16.
On June 8, 2026, the Federal Respondents filed a Response to the Petition.1 ECF No. 8.
Therein, counsel for Respondents acknowledges that the facts of this case are “substantially
similar” to Duhan v. Noem, No. 2:26-cv-00019-MIS-JFR, 2026 WL 266619 (D.N.M. Feb. 2,
2026), and that “this Court’s decision in Duhan v. Noem, would control the result here if the Court
adheres to that decision, as the facts are not materially distinguishable for purposes of the Court’s
decision on the legal issue of which statutory provision authorizes Petitioner’s detention.” Id. at
3. However, Respondents maintain that Petitioner is an applicant for admission seeking admission
subject to mandatory detention under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b). Id. at 2.
The Court finds that the facts of this case are materially indistinguishable from prior cases
the Undersigned Judge has decided involving habeas petitioners who were detained within the
United States, rather than at a border crossing or port of entry, and adopts the findings contained
in its Order Granting the Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus in Lopez-Romero v. Lyons, Case No.
2:25-cv-0113-MIS-JHR, 2026 WL 92873 (D.N.M. Jan. 13, 2026). Briefly, the Court finds that 8
U.S.C. § 1226(a) governs Petitioner’s detention, his continued detention without a bond hearing
violates his Fifth Amendment right to due process, and, as such, he is entitled to habeas relief. The
Court further finds that Respondents failed to articulate a legitimate interest in Petitioner’s
continued detention and therefore orders his immediate release. See generally Resp., ECF No. 8.
1 The Clerk’s Office served all Respondents with the Petition pursuant to this District’s Standing
Order Regarding Service of Process in Immigration Habeas Petitions filed Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241, Case 1:26-
mc-00004, ECF No. 3 (D.N.M. Jan. 28, 2026). ECF No. 4. However, as has become customary in these cases, the
Warden did not respond to the Petition.
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The Court further orders that Petitioner shall not be re-detained without a pre-deprivation bond
hearing before a neutral Immigration Judge pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a), at which the
Government must prove by clear and convincing evidence that Petitioner is a danger or flight risk.
Finally, the Court retains jurisdiction to ensure compliance with its Order.
Therefore, it is HEREBY ORDERED that:
1. The Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus, ECF No. 1, is GRANTED;
2. Respondents are ORDERED to immediately release Petitioner Francisco
Gonzalez-Trejo from custody/detention;
3. Respondents SHALL return all of Petitioner’s personal belongings to Petitioner;
4. Respondents SHALL NOT re-detain Petitioner—absent a final order of removal—
without a pre-deprivation hearing before a neutral Immigration Judge pursuant to 8
U.S.C. § 1226(a), at which the Government must prove by clear and convincing
evidence that Petitioner is a danger or flight risk; and
5. The Court will separately enter Final Judgment in favor of Petitioner but retain
jurisdiction over this matter to ensure compliance with this Order.
………………………………………….
MARGARET STRICKLAND
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
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