Immigrants rely on habeas petitions to fight Trump's mandatory detentions
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Federal courts in Arizona and nationwide are flooded with habeas corpus petitions from immigrants alleging they're being wrongfully detained.
The big picture: The Trump administration last July implemented a policy barring immigration judges from granting bail to people in ICE custody who entered the country illegally.
- The move reversed a decades-old legal interpretation that allowed release on bond during removal proceedings.
- In response, immigration attorneys have taken to filing habeas corpus petitions challenging the legality of a person's detention and requesting they be let out on bond while fighting their deportation.
Why it matters: Immigrants who are forced to go this route are stuck in detention, away from their families and jobs, while their cases play out.
State of play: Many people opt for deportation rather than remaining in federal detention while their cases proceed, immigration attorneys told Axios.
- Immigrants could spend several months in detention while challenging deportations — sometimes in notorious facilities like "Alligator Alcatraz" or the detention center in Dilley, Texas — or longer if they lose and appeal, according to an Arizona immigration attorney who asked not to be named due to retaliation concerns.
- Legal fees range from $3,000 to $15,000, Tucson immigration attorney Mo Goldman told Axios.
- "The idea behind all this is trying to just get people to be deported, leave," he said.
By the numbers: In Arizona, 891 habeas cases have been filed since the beginning of 2025 — 773 still active — with most filed after the July policy change, per the website habeasdockets.org.
- Through the first six months of President Trump's current term, weekly filings nationwide rarely exceeded 50, per a ProPublica analysis.
- But they steadily increased, reaching a high of 2,283 in early February.
Between the lines: Eleven U.S. District Court judges in Arizona have issued rulings granting habeas requests — though one rejected a petition in a separate case — per an analysis by Politico.
- As of mid-February, federal courts had ruled more than 4,400 times that ICE had jailed people illegally, Reuters reported.
- Only 33 of 430 judges cited by Politico rejected habeas petitions.
Zoom in: The mandatory detention policy applies regardless of how long someone has been in the U.S., whether they have family here, or whether they have a criminal history.
- Phoenix immigration attorney Delia Salvatierra said about 80% of her clients have no criminal histories.
What they're saying: "There is tremendous resilience in these people. …They want to be here for their families, their dreams, their businesses, their homes," Salvatierra said.
The intrigue: A federal judge in California overturned the detention policy in December, and last month issued a scathing order castigating the administration for refusing to comply.
- Judge Sunshine Sykes wrote that the administration had "far crossed the boundaries of constitutional conduct."
- Salvatierra told Axios that immigration judges are still rejecting her clients' bond requests despite the order.
Yes, but: The U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi, ruled in favor of the policy. DOJ appealed Sykes' ruling to the 9th Circuit, which includes California and Arizona.
The other side: An unnamed DOJ spokesperson told Axios the Trump administration is "fully enforcing immigration law" after "four years of de facto amnesty" under former President Biden.
- Federal courts wouldn't have an "overwhelming" habeas caseload if "rogue judges" followed the law and respected the government's obligation to properly prepare cases, the spokesperson said.
The bottom line: The policy appears likely to go to the U.S. Supreme Court.