Immigration attorneys are successfully challenging cases requiring mandatory detentions as the Trump administration tries to invoke a policy that denies due process.
December 10, 2025
The Trump administration’s move to overturn years of legal precedent and require mandatory detention for all immigrants facing deportation has sparked outrage from advocates who say they are being denied due process.
Now, the migrants are fighting back in a torrent of legal challenges — and are on a winning streak in federal court.
Since September, when the mandatory detention policy took effect, judges have ruled overwhelmingly in favor of immigrants challenging the change, ordering the administration in case after case to hold immigration bond hearings for detainees or release them, according to a Washington Post review of hundreds of court cases.
Not all migrants targeted for deportation face mandatory detention. Those who entered the country legally but overstayed their visas maintain the right to seek bond,
For decades, immigration judges viewed these groups as having distinct legal rights: Those arrested at the border are “seeking admission to the country” and can be held in detention, while those who have been in the country for more than two years without committing other crimes have established community ties and are generally eligible for an immigration bond.
The administration’s approach has incensed immigration attorneys, who responded by seeking habeas petitions in U.S. district courts. Court records reviewed by The Post show that federal judges in at least 51 judicial districts rejected the government’s position, saying the no-bond policy violates the Constitution.