Unreported / Non-Citable
Background
Noraisy Mendez Mercader, a Cuban citizen in removal proceedings, petitioned for a writ of habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2241 seeking release from immigration custody. She was not subject to a final order of removal when the case was filed.
The district court explained that it had jurisdiction over a § 2241 challenge to pre-removal-order immigration detention. The petition was one of more than 700 filed in the court seeking release from immigration custody during removal proceedings.
The Court’s Holding
The court denied the petition, holding that Fifth Circuit precedent foreclosed Mercader’s claim that she was unlawfully detained without a bond hearing under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a). Under Buenrostro-Mendez v. Bondi, a person in removal proceedings who cannot show that she is “clearly and beyond a doubt entitled to be admitted” is subject to mandatory detention under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b)(2)(A). The court concluded that Mercader fell within that rule.
The court also held that the Fifth Circuit’s en banc decision in Sosnava Rodriguez v. Vergara foreclosed Mercader’s argument that mandatory detention under § 1225(b)(2)(A) violated due process. It denied all pending motions as moot and ordered the case closed. The court further stated that if Mercader had since received a final removal order, been removed, or been released, the petition was denied as moot because the requested relief could no longer be granted.
Key Takeaways
- A noncitizen in ongoing removal proceedings who is not clearly entitled to admission may be mandatorily detained under § 1225(b)(2)(A).
- Binding Fifth Circuit precedent foreclosed both the statutory claim to a § 1226(a) bond hearing and the due-process challenge to mandatory detention.
- Release, removal, or entry of a final removal order may render a pre-removal detention petition moot when the requested relief can no longer be provided.
Why It Matters
The decision applies two recent Fifth Circuit rulings to reject statutory and constitutional challenges to mandatory immigration detention. In district courts within the Fifth Circuit, similarly situated detainees cannot obtain a § 1226(a) bond hearing or release merely by arguing that detention under § 1225(b)(2)(A) violates due process.