Summary
The United States District Court for the District of Colorado granted in part Juan Antonio Diaz Lopez’s petition for a writ of habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2241. The court held that 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b)(2)(A) did not authorize the petitioner’s mandatory detention and that detention was instead governed by § 1226(a), entitling him to an individualized bond hearing. The court ordered respondents to provide a bond hearing by February 3, 2026, with the Government bearing the burden of justifying continued detention.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b)(2)(A) authorizes mandatory detention without a bond hearing for a noncitizen who has long been present in the United States and is not actively seeking admission.
- Whether Petitioner's continued detention without an individualized custody determination violated 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a).
- Whether detention without a bond hearing violated Petitioner's substantive or procedural due process rights.
- Whether the court should require the Government to bear the burden of proof at Petitioner's § 1226(a) bond hearing and require consideration of his ability to pay.
Holdings
- Section 1225(b)(2)(A) does not authorize the Government's detention of Petitioner because he was not presently and actively seeking admission to the United States. His detention is governed by the default discretionary framework of § 1226(a).
- Because § 1226(a) governs Petitioner's detention, the Government was required to provide him with a bond hearing or other individualized custody determination. Continued detention without such a hearing violated § 1226(a).
- Denying Petitioner a bond hearing while detaining him under § 1226(a) violated his due process rights.
- The Government must bear the burden of establishing at Petitioner's § 1226(a) bond hearing that he presents a flight risk or danger to the community sufficient to justify continued detention. The court declined to decide whether the immigration judge must consider Petitioner's ability to pay.
Key quotations
“The plain meaning of the phrase ‘seeking admission’ requires that the applicant must be presently and actively seeking lawful entry into the United States.” (Analysis § II)
“At the bond hearing, the Government will bear the burden of justifying Mr. Diaz’s continued detention.” (Analysis § III)
Factual background
Juan Antonio Diaz Lopez, a citizen of Mexico, had lived in the United States since 2012. ICE detained him in November 2025 and held him without a bond hearing. The Government asserted that his detention was mandatory under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b)(2)(A), while Petitioner argued that he was governed by the discretionary detention framework of § 1226(a).
Procedural history
Petitioner filed a § 2241 habeas petition alleging that the Government improperly detained him under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b) rather than § 1226(a), thereby denying him a bond hearing. Respondents filed a response and Petitioner replied. The court decided the fully briefed matter without an evidentiary hearing or oral argument and granted the Petition in part.
Remand instructions
Respondents must provide Petitioner with a bond hearing before an immigration judge no later than February 3, 2026. The Government must bear the burden of justifying continued detention. If Respondents fail to provide the required hearing, Petitioner must be immediately released. The parties must file a joint status report by February 10, 2026.