Detained Without a Bond Hearing? How to File a Habeas Corpus Petition.

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Over 18,000 immigrants have sued in federal court saying their detention is illegal since the Trump administration took office. That’s more court petitions challenging whether they can be held in jail than were filed during the previous three administrations combined. In recent weeks, thousands of these petitions have flooded federal courts—a dramatic surge compared to fewer than 500 such cases in all of 2024.

The Trump administration announced a new rule that any immigrant who entered the United States without inspection must be detained without the possibility of a bond hearing while their immigration case proceeds. The policy affects potentially millions of people, including those who have lived in the country for decades. When the government’s immigration appeals board upheld this interpretation in September 2025, immigration judges were told they could no longer hold hearings for detained immigrants.

Federal district court judges across the country have been rejecting this policy en masse. Politico analyzed cases and found that over 300 federal judges rejected the administration’s detention approach, compared to 14 judges who have sided with the government. This includes judges appointed by President Trump himself—indeed, over 300 judges ruled against the policy across the political spectrum.

Immigrants currently locked in detention facilities without being offered a bond hearing can file a habeas corpus petition—a legal tool that lets you challenge whether the government can hold you—which has emerged as the most powerful remedy available. Federal judges with decided cases have overwhelmingly ruled in favor of detainees in 2025, with over 300 judges ordering detainees either be released or provided with bond hearings before immigration judges.

What Changed and Why Federal Courts Became the Only Option

For thirty years, the standard practice was straightforward. Immigrants arrested in the interior of the country without proper legal entry documents could request a bond hearing before an immigration judge who would determine whether they posed a flight risk or danger to the community. Bond hearings assumed people should be released unless the government proved otherwise.

That system collapsed overnight when the appeals board changed its decision in September 2025. The practical effect was clear: the policy change meant the government automatically detained everyone. Immigration judges could no longer hold hearings to consider an individual’s circumstances. Detainees requesting release were told no hearing was available.

People were detained indefinitely with no pathway to argue their cases. Construction workers with American citizen children. Employees with clean records working in the same job for five years. Refugees who had been living safely in U.S. communities.

During those same months, federal district court judges began receiving these petitions from detained immigrants’ attorneys challenging the detention as unconstitutional and unlawful. By early 2026, the pattern had become unmistakable: when given the opportunity to evaluate the legality of detention without a hearing, federal judges across the country—appointed by presidents of both parties—overwhelmingly sided with detainees.

How Habeas Corpus Works

The writ of habeas corpus stands as one of the oldest protections in Anglo-American law, embodied in the U.S. Constitution itself. Habeas corpus is the mechanism by which any person held in government custody can demand that a court evaluate whether that detention is lawful. The Constitution provides that the right to challenge your detention in court cannot be taken away except in cases of rebellion or invasion, a protection so fundamental it appears in Article I alongside congressional powers.

Immigration detainees file these petitions in federal district court. When a detainee files one of these petitions, the court must ask a single question: does the government have legal authority to hold this person in custody?

If the answer is no—if the detention violates the Constitution or federal law—the court must rule in your favor, typically by ordering a bond hearing before an immigration judge or release.

Federal judges have found that detaining immigrants who entered without inspection as people trying to enter the country subject to mandatory detention violates their right to a fair hearing when the government never provides an opportunity to argue their individual circumstances. Some judges have emphasized that detaining someone indefinitely without any hearing—without the government proving they are dangerous or a flight risk—contradicts core constitutional principles.

What makes these petitions different from other immigration options is how fast they work. An immigrant being deported can appeal to the appeals board and potentially to the federal courts of appeals, but those processes take months or years. A petition in federal district court demands the court act on the question of whether detention itself is lawful, and can produce decisions within weeks or even days in emergency circumstances.

Where to File: Location Matters

You must file these petitions in the federal court for the area where you’re detained. If you are held at a detention facility in the Southern District of Texas, you file in the Southern District of Texas. If ICE transfers you to a facility in California, the case would transfer with you.

This ensures the judge can order your release, since federal courts can only make orders about people held in their area. Where you’re detained determines which judges will evaluate your petition, and current data shows that judges in different areas have different success rates.

The Fifth Circuit is a major exception. Several federal judges in Texas have granted these petitions anyway, finding legal reasons that don’t directly contradict earlier decisions. But detainees in Fifth Circuit states face less certain success, though not impossible.

The Filing Process: Step by Step

You need to file a specific federal court form (AO 242), “Petition to Challenge Your Detention in Federal Court,” which is available on every federal district court’s website. The form is straightforward and does not require a lawyer to file.

It asks for basic identifying information: your name, current location, identification number (typically an A-number from ICE), and the agency holding you in custody. The petition must identify your custodian—the warden or facility director where you are detained—and the government officials responsible for your detention, typically the ICE field office director and the DHS Secretary.

The most important part is where you explain why your detention is illegal. Current petitions challenging detention under the mandatory detention policy typically assert one or more of the following reasons. First, many petitions argue that detention without an individualized bond hearing violates the right to a fair hearing.

Second, you can argue that the government is misusing a border detention law—a border inspection statute—on immigrants arrested in the interior of the country, using the law in a way it was never meant to be used, breaking its own 30-year practice.

What to Include: Documents That Strengthen Your Case

You should include any orders from immigration court that denied you a bond hearing, showing that you were told no hearing was available.

You should also gather documents showing you have roots in the United States—evidence that you won’t run away and you’re not dangerous. This might include:

Birth certificates of U.S. citizen children. Marriage certificates to lawful permanent residents or citizens. Employment letters from employers. Lease agreements or mortgage documents showing residence. Letters from community members. Evidence of religious affiliation or community organization participation. Medical records. School enrollment documents for children.

The more you can show you have genuine roots in the United States, the stronger your petition. If the court orders a bond hearing, these documents will be important when you argue your case.

You must pay a $5 filing fee, though this can be waived if you cannot afford to pay. To ask for a fee waiver, you can submit a short or long form, both available on the court’s website. You must sign a statement saying you have no money and cannot pay the court fee. If you are detained and have no money, this will typically be granted.

Once you prepare it, mail the petition to the federal court in the area where you’re detained. The envelope should be marked clearly with the filing fee or the fee waiver form. You must also prepare a form saying you sent copies to the government—typically the person running your detention facility, the local ICE office, the U.S. Attorney’s office, and sometimes the head of immigration.

Legal Arguments That Are Working

The extraordinary success rate doesn’t mean detainees are freed with no conditions in every case. Rather, it means that in the vast majority of cases where federal judges ruled on the merits, they ruled that the detention violates the Constitution or federal law—typically by ordering a bond hearing where an immigration judge can look at your specific situation.

Federal judges who ruled in favor of detainees have used several consistent arguments. The strongest argument is that locking people up without looking at their individual situation violates the right to a fair hearing. As one federal judge explained in a Michigan case, the Constitution requires the government to give bond hearings after six months and prove the person is dangerous or will run away.

Judges have said it violates the Constitution for the government to lock someone up indefinitely—for months or years—without ever asking whether that person is dangerous or likely to flee.

A second strong argument is that the government is misinterpreting the border detention law, the law the administration says allows mandatory detention. Federal judges have noted that this law was passed in 1996 to handle immigrants arriving at border checkpoints who might be dangerous and need quick screening. Using this law on someone arrested years after entering, who never went through inspection, is using it wrong.

Successful petitions tell a clear, logical story. They show you’re detained, explain which law the government is using, say why that law doesn’t apply, cite recent court decisions, and conclude the court must order your release. They don’t make new constitutional arguments or try to overturn established law. Instead, they point out problems with the government’s argument that judges are already seeing.

Finding Legal Help

The huge increase in petitions has created a huge need for lawyers. With thousands of petitions filed in recent weeks and more still coming, immigration attorneys are overwhelmed. Yet legal services organizations across the country have made these petitions a priority.

The National Immigration Legal Services Directory lists immigration lawyers by state. Most legal services organizations now help with these petitions. Many law school immigration clinics now focus on these petitions, recognizing both the urgent need and that these cases are relatively simple.

If you can afford a lawyer, know that immigration lawyers from any state can represent you in federal court.

If you can’t afford a lawyer, you have several options. Federal courts keep lists of lawyers willing to work for free. Many federal courts have set up special groups of lawyers for these petitions. Large law firms often provide free lawyers for these petitions.

If you represent yourself, there are tools to help. The Florence Project in Arizona publishes guides for immigration detainees, including sample petitions and filing instructions. While petitions without a lawyer need more care and may have lower success rates, federal judges regularly rule in favor of people without lawyers.

Timeline and What to Expect After Filing

Once you file your petition, the government has a limited time to respond. The government usually has 3 to 20 days to respond, depending on the court and your case. In many areas, courts order the government not to move or detain you while your case is being decided, meaning filing itself can give you temporary protection.

Judges decide these petitions at different speeds. Some federal judges rule within days, ordering emergency hearings or releasing you based on what’s written. Others take several weeks to review your case and rule. Usually it takes 30 to 60 days from filing to a decision, though some cases move faster if you ask for emergency help.

When courts rule in your favor, they usually order the government to give you a bond hearing instead of releasing you. This is a victory: once a federal court orders a bond hearing, everything changes. Instead of you proving you should be released, the government must prove you’re dangerous or will run away.

The fact that a federal judge ruled your detention was illegal strongly suggests to immigration judges that you should be released.

Some federal courts order you released, especially if they find ICE had no legal right to detain you—for example, if you can prove you had legal status that ICE illegally took away. In those cases, the court orders you released, though you may have to check in with ICE or agree to be monitored.

The Bond Hearing: What Comes Next

If your petition succeeds and the court orders a bond hearing, things change. The bond hearing follows different rules than the mandatory detention policy. The immigration judge must consider two questions: Are you dangerous? Will you run away?

Who has to prove what depends on how the federal court ruled. In many cases, especially those based on constitutional violations, the federal court makes the government prove its case, meaning the government must prove you’re dangerous or will run away. In other cases, you must prove you’re not dangerous and won’t run away.

Either way, the immigration judge must look at your specific situation.

To succeed at a bond hearing, you need to prepare. You need documents showing you have roots in the United States: birth certificates for U.S. citizen children, marriage certificates, employment letters, utility bills or lease agreements showing residence, bank statements, evidence of school enrollment for children, health insurance, letters from community members testifying to your character. You can testify at the hearing, which usually lasts 15 to 30 minutes, and your lawyer will argue for your release.

Bond amounts usually range from $1,500 to $25,000 depending on any criminal record and how strong your community connections are. If you can’t pay the bond, a bond company can pay it for you for a fee (usually 10 to 20 percent). Once bond is paid, ICE must release you, usually within 24 to 48 hours.

After release, you must follow all the rules: go to every court hearing, check in with ICE, tell them if you move, and don’t break any rules. If you break the rules, you’ll be detained again and lose your bond money.

But you’re no longer locked up. You’re home with family. You can talk to your lawyer. You can prepare your case from outside detention.

Real Cases: What Success Looks Like

Consider the case of Kenia Jackline Merlos, a Honduran citizen who had lived continuously in the United States since May 2003—over twenty years—when she was detained. She had applied for a U visa (for crime victims) and police confirmed she helped them, and immigration officials gave her permission to stay and work in December 2024.

Yet when she was detained in October 2025, the government said it had to hold her because she entered the country illegally over 20 years earlier.

Her lawyers filed a petition arguing that the immigration judge had ended her deportation case, meaning there was no legal reason to keep her detained; that she had legal permission to stay, so holding her was illegal; and that the mandatory detention policy broke the Constitution by denying her a fair hearing. The petition showed she had lived here for 20 years, was married to a U.S. citizen, had permission to work, and had four U.S. citizen children.

Her case shows the situations where federal judges rule in favor of detainees: people who have lived here a long time with strong community ties, legal status or pending applications, family in the U.S., and detention that seems unfair and pointless.

Similarly, the American Immigration Council documented a case of six people who passed the initial asylum interview—meaning they showed they might qualify for asylum. The government was trying to hold them even though they passed their asylum interviews. On December 5, 2025, the federal court ruled in their favor and ordered all six released, saying the detention was illegal.

The court said that once someone passes the initial asylum interview, their situation is fundamentally different—they’re no longer trying to enter but are in the asylum process. Holding them while their asylum cases are decided violates the Constitution because there’s no legal reason to detain them.

Why Speed Matters: The Supreme Court Question

Federal judges know their decisions might be overturned by higher courts. Different federal appeals courts have disagreed—one appeals court says the government’s reading of the law is right, while every other appeals court agrees with the lower court judges who say it’s wrong.

This disagreement means the Supreme Court will almost certainly get involved. The Supreme Court will probably decide whether the detention policy is legal. If the Supreme Court agrees with the government, people may not be able to get help. If the Court agrees with the lower court judges, it will support what they’re doing. The timing is unclear—the Court could hear the case now or wait for more appeals court decisions.

This uncertainty means detained immigrants need to act fast. Filing a petition now, while federal judges are mostly ruling in your favor, gives you protection that might disappear if the Supreme Court overrules them. Lawyers across the country are pushing people to file quickly, knowing that if higher courts disagree, it might become harder to win.

People currently detained need to act now. The remedy is working now, winning cases most of the time and giving people chances to get bond hearings that might disappear if the Supreme Court disagrees.

What the Surge Reveals About the System

The explosive growth in these petitions—from fewer than 500 in all of 2024 to thousands in recent weeks—shows serious problems with the immigration detention system. It’s not a few bad cases. It’s mass detention causing mass lawsuits because federal judges overwhelmingly agree the detention system is illegal.

The speed and scale of the surge shows how fast information spreads through detained immigrant networks and legal services organizations. Once lawyers in one area see this approach is working, they share strategies with lawyers in other areas. Once one federal judge rules in favor of a detainee, other judges see that decision and the reasoning behind it. Within weeks, it becomes clear this is a reliable way to get released.

The fact that federal courts have to step in case-by-case to order bond hearings, instead of immigration courts doing it automatically, shows the system is breaking the Constitution. If the mandatory detention policy were legal, federal judges wouldn’t be overwhelmingly rejecting it. The pattern of over 300 judges rejecting the policy compared to 14 upholding it wouldn’t happen if the policy were legal.

The surge is also overwhelming the government. U.S. Attorney’s offices say they’re overwhelmed responding to petitions. Government lawyers are publicly saying they can’t keep up. Meanwhile, immigration judges are told to follow policies that federal judges say are illegal, putting them in an impossible position.

The surge shows the detention system is not operating legally but as a coercive policy that federal judges say violates the Constitution. When thousands of people detained without hearings file petitions and federal courts rule in their favor in the vast majority of cases, the system is broken.

The Bottom Line

Immigrants detained without bond hearings face a stark reality: the court petition is the only place where judges will look at your specific situation, the only way to challenge detention that federal judges say is illegal.

Understanding how to file one of these petitions—where to file, what to include, what arguments work, where to find a lawyer—is critical for anyone detained without a bond hearing. The process is doable. Most people win. It can take weeks instead of months or years.

Federal courts across the country are ready to hear your case and almost always rule in your favor.

Things may change when the Supreme Court gets involved. The detention policy might change or be dropped because judges overwhelmingly disagree with it. But as of February 2026, this is the most reliable and fastest way for detained immigrants to get released.

People currently detained who understand how to file these petitions and act fast have the best chance to reunite with family, go back to work, and get out of jail. The surge in filings shows that thousands of people are finding this way to get released and it’s working.

The door is open. Walk through it.

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