Case Name in Immigration Case - Unavailable

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF NEW MEXICO
GURWINDER SINGH,
Petitioner,
v.
Case No. 2:26-cv-00018-MIS-GJF
MARY DE ANDA-YBARRA, in her official
capacity as Field Office Acting Director of
Enforcement and Removal Operations, El
Paso Field Office, Immigration and Customs
Enforcement; KRISTI NOEM, in her official
capacity as Secretary of the Department of
Homeland Security; PAMELA BONDI, in
her official capacity as Attorney General of
the United States; TODD M. LYONS, in his
official 	capacity 	as 	Acting 	Director 	and
Senior Official Performing the Duties of the
Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement; and DORA CASTRO, in her
official capacity as Warden of the Otero
County Processing Center,
Respondents.
ORDER GRANTING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS
THIS MATTER is before the Court on Petitioner Gurwinder Singh’s Petition for Writ of
Habeas Corpus (“Petition”), ECF No. 1, filed January 6, 2026. 	Respondents Mary De Anda-
Ybarra, Kristi Noem, and Pamela Bondi (“Federal Respondents”)1, 2 filed a Response on January
1 	Respondent Dora Castro, Warden of the Otero County Processing Center, did not file a response or
otherwise appear in this case. It has become standard practice in these habeas cases for the warden of the relevant
detention center to either appear and adopt the federal respondents’ arguments, see, e.g., Intriago-Sedgwick v. Noem,
Case No. 1:25-cv-01065-MIS-LF, Notice of Joinder In USA Respondents’ Forthcoming Claims and Defenses, ECF
No. 11 (D.N.M. Dec. 3, 2025), or not appear at all, see Francisco v. Dedos, Case No. 1:25-cv-01229-MIS-GJF,
Proposed Findings and Recommended Disposition at 8, ECF No. 53 (D.N.M. Jan. 20, 2026). The Federal Respondents
concede that Warden Castro’s positions align with those of the Federal Respondents. See Resp. at 1 n.1, ECF No. 9.
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29, 2026, ECF No. 9, to which Petitioner filed a Memorandum in Opposition on February 2, 2026,
ECF No. 10.
Counsel for Respondents did not distinguish this case from other cases involving the
detention of noncitizens already present in the United States—as opposed to noncitizens detained
at a border crossing or port of entry—but argued that Petitioner is an applicant for admission
seeking admission subject to mandatory detention under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b)(2). Resp. at 15-20,
ECF No. 9.
Ultimately, 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,3 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. 9. 	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
3 	In support of this finding, the Court observed that the Notice to Appear issued to Petitioner by the
Department of Homeland Security on May 6, 2024, identifies Petitioner as “an alien present in the United States who
has not been admitted or paroled,” and does not identify him as “an arriving alien.” ECF No. 9-2. Additionally, U.S.
Customs and Border Protection released Petitioner on bond and paroled Petitioner into the United States in April,
2024. Mem. in Opp’n at 5, ECF No. 10.
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flight risk. 	Finally, the Court retains jurisdiction to ensure compliance with its Order and to
entertain any motions for attorneys’ fees.
Accordingly, it is HEREBY ORDERED that:
1. 	Petitioner Gurwinder Singh’s Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus, ECF No. 1, is
GRANTED;
2. 	Respondents are ORDERED to immediately release Petitioner from detention;
3. 	Respondents SHALL NOT re-detain Petitioner 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
4. 	The Court will separately enter Final Judgment in favor of Petitioner but retain
jurisdiction over this matter to ensure compliance with this Order and to entertain
any motions for attorneys’ fees.
………………………………………….
MARGARET STRICKLAND
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
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