Unreported / Non-Citable
Background
Patricia Vazquez Maturino, a Mexican citizen in removal proceedings, petitioned for a writ of habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2241. She remained in immigration custody and, according to the information before the court, was not subject to a final order of removal.
The petition was one of more than 700 filed in the district seeking release from immigration custody during removal proceedings. The court recognized that it had jurisdiction over a Section 2241 challenge to pre-removal-order detention, but assessed the requested relief under recent binding Fifth Circuit precedent governing detention under 8 U.S.C. §§ 1225 and 1226.
The Court’s Holding
The court denied the habeas petition. Relying on Buenrostro-Mendez v. Bondi, it held that Vazquez Maturino was subject to mandatory detention under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b)(2)(A) because she had not shown that she was “clearly and beyond a doubt entitled to be admitted.” That precedent foreclosed her argument that the absence of a bond hearing under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) made her custody unlawful.
The court also concluded that the Fifth Circuit’s en banc decision in Sosnava Rodriguez v. Vergara foreclosed any claim that mandatory detention under Section 1225(b)(2)(A) violated due process. It denied all pending motions as moot and ordered the case closed. The court added that if Vazquez Maturino had since received a final removal order, been removed, or been released, the petition was denied as moot because the requested habeas relief could no longer be granted.
Key Takeaways
- A noncitizen in removal proceedings who cannot show that she is clearly and beyond a doubt entitled to admission is subject to mandatory detention under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b)(2)(A).
- Binding Fifth Circuit precedent foreclosed both the request for a bond hearing under Section 1226(a) and the due-process challenge to mandatory detention.
- The court denied the Section 2241 petition, denied pending motions as moot, and closed the case.
Why It Matters
The ruling applies two recent Fifth Circuit decisions to pre-removal-order immigration detention in Texas. Under those precedents, detainees governed by Section 1225(b)(2)(A) cannot obtain habeas relief merely by asserting a right to a Section 1226(a) bond hearing or by challenging mandatory detention on due-process grounds.