Asylum seeker with valid work permit detained by ICE for months wins habeas release
Feb 9, 2026·Location: California City, CA
The petitioner entered the United States on a visitor visa in October 2017, authorized to stay until April 2018. He filed for asylum in March 2018, shortly before his visa expired, and has since been granted work authorization multiple times, with his most recent authorization valid from August 2022 through October 2028. On February 9, 2026, he was transferred from local custody into ICE custody, where he was held under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) at a detention facility. He filed a pro se petition for writ of habeas corpus challenging his detention on procedural due process grounds and sought a temporary restraining order for immediate release. The government argued he should be required to exhaust administrative remedies and that he had received all process due under the statute, but failed to fully respond to the court's requests for documentation about his asylum status, work authorization, and custody determination. The court found that immigration authorities had been aware of and had authorized his continued presence in the U.S. for years after his visa expired, giving him a protected liberty interest in his continued release. The court granted his habeas petition, ordered his immediate release, and barred future re-detention without a pre-detention hearing unless exigent circumstances exist.
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