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Federal appeals court strikes down mandatory detention policy, orders bond hearings for thousands

May 11, 2026 · Michigan

Federal appeals court strikes down mandatory detention policy, orders bond hearings for thousands

The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected an ICE policy denying detained immigrants access to bond hearings, finding the mandatory detention of long-term U.S. residents unconstitutional and contrary to federal law and three decades of government practice. The 2-1 decision in Lopez-Campos v. Raycraft upholds four separate district court rulings from Michigan judges who found that residents—many with U.S. citizen families and some who have lived in the country since infancy—were being unlawfully detained without due process. The court's decision is expected to affect thousands of people in Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee, and Kentucky and reflects arguments made by the ACLU in four consolidated cases challenging the Trump administration's directive reversing decades-long access to bond hearings.

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