Alassane Ba v. ICE/DHS

Summary

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky grants Alassane Ba’s petition for a writ of habeas corpus challenging his immigration detention. Applying the Sixth Circuit’s decision in Lopez-Campos v. Raycraft, the Court concludes that Ba is detained under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) and is entitled to a constitutionally adequate bond hearing at which the government bears the burden of proof by clear and convincing evidence. The Court orders Ba’s immediate release or such a hearing within fourteen days and denies his miscellaneous motion.

Holdings

1. The petition was not moot because Ba had not yet received the bond hearing he sought and to which he was constitutionally entitled.
2. Ba was entitled to a bond hearing because 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a), rather than the mandatory-detention provisions of § 1225, governed his detention.
3. Withholding Ba's access to a bond hearing violated his due process rights, and the hearing must require the government to justify continued detention by clear and convincing evidence.

Questions Presented

1. Whether Ba's habeas petition became moot after the government conceded that he was entitled to seek a custody redetermination hearing.
2. Whether Ba was entitled to a constitutionally adequate bond hearing under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) and the Due Process Clause.
3. Whether the government must bear the burden of proving dangerousness or flight risk by clear and convincing evidence at the bond hearing.

Disposition

writ_granted