9th Circuit Court blocks Trump administration's denial of bond hearings for detained immigrants

A three-judge panel of the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Thursday that the Trump administration may not deny bond hearings to immigrants detained within the United States. The 2-1 decision, written by Judge Daniel Bress, a Trump appointee, rejected the administration’s claim that a 1996 congressional amendment permits mandatory detention of interior arrests.

The ruling deepens a growing division among appellate courts: four circuits have already rejected the mandatory-detention policy, while the Fifth and Eighth Circuits continue to uphold it. The split raises the prospect that the Supreme Court could take up the issue, which the administration has asked the high court to review.

The Department of Homeland Security issued a statement saying it “strongly disagrees with the Ninth Circuit panel and is confident in its legal position regarding mandatory detention,” adding that President Donald Trump and Secretary Kevin Mullin are “enforcing the law as it was actually written to keep America safe.”

Under prior administrations, most non-citizens arrested inside the country without criminal records were allowed to seek bond while their immigration cases proceeded, with mandatory detention generally limited to border arrests. The Trump administration expanded the policy in July, prompting numerous lawsuits.

In the majority opinion, Judge Bress wrote that, despite complexities in the statutory language, “the historical understanding of the statute is the better one.” He was joined by Judge M. Margaret McKeown, a Clinton appointee. Judge Carlos Bea, appointed by President George W. Bush, dissented, arguing that the 1996 amendment’s text and purpose support the administration’s interpretation.