Trump administration can continue detaining immigrants without bond, US appeals court rules

An appeals court ruled Wednesday that the U.S. can continue detaining immigrants without bond, marking a win for the Trump administration’s crackdown on its immigration policies.

The opinion from a panel of the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis overturned a lower court ruling that required that a native of Mexico arrested for lacking legal documents be given a bond hearing before an immigration judge.

US appeals court rules Trump administration can detain immigrants without bond

Big picture view:

In the case before the 8th Circuit, Joaquin Herrera Avila of Mexico was apprehended in Minneapolis in August 2025 for lacking legal documents authorizing his admission into the United States. The Department of Homeland Security detained Avila without bond and began deportation proceedings.

He filed a petition seeking immediate release or a bond hearing. A federal judge in Minnesota granted the petition, saying the law authorized detention without bond when a person seeking admission is not clearly and beyond a doubt entitled to being admitted. 

The judge found this was not the case for Avila because he had lived in the country for years without seeking naturalization, asylum or refugee status and thus wasn’t "seeking admission."

Bondi calls ruling ‘massive court victory’

What they're saying:

Attorney General Pam Bondi hailed the ruling, writing in a social media post: "MASSIVE COURT VICTORY against activist judges and for President Trump’s law and order agenda!"

Previous rulings on bond hearings for immigrants

The backstory:

This is the second appeals court to rule in favor of the administration on this issue. 

The 5th Circuit in New Orleans ruled last month that the Department of Homeland Security’s decision to deny bond hearings to immigrants arrested across the country was consistent with the Constitution and federal immigration law.

Both appeals court opinions counter recent lower court decisions across the country that argued the practice is illegal.

In November, a district court decision in California granted detained immigrants with no criminal history the opportunity to request a bond hearing and had implications for noncitizens held in detention nationwide.

Last July, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said it would stop granting bond hearings for detained migrants, rather than allow them to go before an immigration judge and potentially remain free while their cases go through court. 

RELATED: ICE moves to end bond hearings for detained migrants, memo shows

According to a memo from Todd Lyons, ICE’s acting director, the new policy was effective immediately and would allow ICE to detain far more people than before. 

Lyons said in a July 8 memo that the agency was using its "extraordinarily broad and equally complex" authority to make detainees ineligible for a bond hearing before an immigration judge. Instead, they cannot be released unless the Homeland Security Department makes an exception.

The broad authority cited by Lyons stems from a 1996 law.

"The Biden administration dangerously unleashed millions of unvetted illegal aliens into the country — and they used many loopholes to do so," Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said. "President (Donald) Trump and Secretary (Kristi) Noem are now enforcing this law as it was actually written to keep America safe."

Lyons said detention is entirely within ICE’s discretion, but he acknowledged a legal challenge was likely. For that reason, he told ICE attorneys to continue gathering evidence to argue for detention before an immigration judge, including potential danger to the community and flight risk.

Under past administrations, most noncitizens with no criminal record who were arrested away from the border had an opportunity to request a bond hearing while their cases wound through immigration court. Historically, bond was often granted to those without criminal convictions who were not flight risks, and mandatory detention was limited to recent border crossers.

Immigrants have filed more than 30,000 habeas corpus petitions in federal court alleging illegal detention since Trump took office, according to a tally by The Associated Press. Many have succeeded.