Natasha Jetcay Cortez-Gonzalez v. Kristi Noem

Summary

The District of New Mexico held that the detention of Natasha Jetcay Cortez-Gonzalez, a noncitizen who had lived in the United States for nearly her entire life, was likely governed by 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) rather than § 1225(b)(2)(A). The court concluded that she was entitled to an individualized bond hearing and that continued detention without one likely violated the Fifth Amendment. The court entered a second temporary restraining order requiring respondents to provide the hearing within seven days.

Holdings

1. Section 1226(a), rather than § 1225(b)(2)(A), governs the pre-removal detention of a noncitizen who has been present in the United States for decades and is not currently seeking admission.
2. The court was not bound by and declined to follow the Board of Immigration Appeals' interpretation in Matter of Yajure Hurtado because the court found that interpretation legally unsound and inconsistent with the governing statutory and regulatory framework.
3. Because § 1226(a) governed her detention, Cortez-Gonzalez was entitled to an individualized bond hearing, and her continued detention without such review constituted an ongoing violation of the Fifth Amendment Due Process Clause.
4. Cortez-Gonzalez satisfied the requirements for limited preliminary injunctive relief requiring Respondents to provide an individualized bond hearing.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the pre-removal detention of a noncitizen who has lived in the United States for many years and is charged with removability is governed by 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b)(2)(A) or by the discretionary detention authority in 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a).
2. Whether a noncitizen detained under § 1226(a) is entitled to an individualized bond hearing as a matter of due process and the governing detention regulations.
3. Whether Cortez-Gonzalez satisfied the requirements for a temporary restraining order requiring Respondents to provide an individualized bond hearing.

Disposition

other