A federal judge in California has ruled that the Trump administration cannot impose mandatory detention on thousands of migrants held by US immigration authorities without first providing them with bond hearings.
Judge Sunshine Sykes in Riverside, California, certified a nationwide class of individuals who were already living in the United States when detained, affirming their legal right to a hearing to determine if they can be released on bond while deportation proceedings continue.
Sykes ruled that the policy adopted in July, which denied bond hearings to migrants detained in domestic enforcement operations, was illegal. While earlier rulings had applied to individual cases, this decision extends nationwide. Approximately 65,000 people were in immigration detention in the US last week.
The judge rejected the administration’s argument that individual circumstances required case-by-case review, stating that the deprivation of bond hearings constituted a common injury to the class. Under federal law, 'applicants for admission' face mandatory detention, but Sykes upheld the longstanding distinction between new arrivals and existing residents.
