Top immigration court rules judges can deny bond to millions of migrants

"A Trump administration policy to deny bond hearings to immigrants who entered the country without authorization was upheld by an immigration appellate board Friday, expanding mandatory detention to thousands of people already behind bars and potentially millions more nationwide. Although the policy is being challenged in federal court, the ruling by the Board of Immigration Appeals is likely to send an immediate chill through immigration courts where judges for decades have released individuals on bond whom they did not deem a flight risk or danger."

"Immigrant rights attorneys say holding immigrants throughout their cases - a process that can sometimes take years - is intended to break the spirit of many and force them to sign their own deportation orders. "This is an effort to increase the number of people in detention significantly," said Niels W. Frenzen, director of the USC Gould School of Law Immigration Clinic, who is part of a team of attorneys who have filed habeas petitions for dozens of immigrants."

"One of those is Ana Franco Galdamez, a mother of two U.S. citizens who has been in the country for two decades. She was getting treatment for breast cancer when she was arrested in a June 19 raid in Los Angeles County, where nearly 1 million undocumented immigrants reside, according to estimates. She was denied bond and missed treatment, but she was eventually released after a lawyer filed a habeas case."

The Board of Immigration Appeals upheld a policy denying bond hearings to immigrants who entered without authorization, broadening mandatory detention across the country. Immigration judges who previously granted bond to non-dangerous, non-flight-risk individuals are now bound by the board's ruling. The change risks keeping thousands currently detained and potentially millions more in custody for the duration of lengthy removal proceedings. Advocates say prolonged detention can force detainees to abandon defenses and sign deportation orders. Reports describe disrupted medical care for detained immigrants and legal challenges via habeas petitions have secured some releases. Immigration courts operate under the Department of Justice.

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