Case Name in Immigration Case - Unavailable

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF NEW MEXICO
SUNILKUMAR R. PATEL,
Petitioner,
v.
Case No. 2:26-cv-01170-MIS-JMR
DORA CASTRO, in her official capacity as Warden,
Otero County Processing Center; MARY DE
ANDA-YBARRA, in her official capacity as Field
Office Director of the El Paso Field Office of
Enforcement and Removal Operations, U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement; TODD M.
LYONS, in his official capacity as Acting Director,
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S.
Department of Homeland Security; MARKWAYNE
MULLIN, in his official capacity as Secretary, U.S.
Department of Homeland Security; and TODD
BLANCHE, in his official capacity as Acting
Attorney General of the United States,
Respondents.
ORDER GRANTING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS
THIS MATTER is before the Court on Petitioner Sunilkumar R. Patel’s Petition for Writ
of Habeas Corpus (“Petition”), ECF No. 1, filed April 15, 2026. Petitioner is a citizen of India
who entered the United States from Mexico without inspection on January 23, 2022. Id. ¶¶ 1, 17.
Shortly after his entry, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol officers apprehended him, charged him as
removable as an alien present without admission or parole, and placed him in removal proceedings.
Id. ¶ 2; Notice to Appear at 1, ECF No. 1-1. On January 25, 2022, Petitioner was released on his
own recognizance. Id. Since then, Petitioner has filed an application for asylum, which remains
pending; has received work authorization and a social security number; has lived a productive and
law-abiding life; and has fathered a U.S. citizen child who is now three years old. Id. ¶ 3.
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Nevertheless, on November 4, 2025, officers with Immigration and Customs Enforcement
(“ICE”) pulled him over while he was driving to work and arrested him. Id. ¶ 4. He is currently
being detained by ICE at the Otero County Processing Center in Chaparral, New Mexico. Id. ¶ 1.
On April 15, 2026, Petitioner filed the instant Petition requesting a writ of habeas corpus
requiring that Respondents immediately release him from ICE custody. Id. at 14.
On April 16, 2026, the Court issued an Order to Show Cause, ECF No. 3, which instructs
that Respondents “shall respond to the Petition and SHOW CAUSE why the requested relief
should not be granted” within ten business days. Id. at 2. The Order reminds Respondents “that
this Court has already decided the issues presented by the Petition and granted the relief Petitioner
requests here.” Id. (citations omitted). As such, the Court ordered that Respondents must
“demonstrate that the facts of this case warrant a departure from the Court’s prior rulings.” Id.
On April 29, 2026, the Federal Respondents filed a Response.1 ECF No. 6. 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 74195 (D.N.M. Jan. 9, 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.
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. 2. However, as has become customary in these cases, the
Warden did not respond to the Petition.
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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. 6.
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 Sunilkumar R.
Patel from custody/detention;
3. Respondents SHALL return all of Petitioner’s seized personal belongings to
Petitioner;
4. 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
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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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