Fifth Circuit Upholds Policy That Illegal Immigrants Can Be Detained Without Bond

Authored by Kimberly Hayek via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

A federal appeals court has sided with the Trump administration in upholding a policy that mandates detention without bond hearings for illegal immigrants in the United States who entered without inspection.

In a 2–1 decision issued Feb. 6, the New Orleans-based Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed lower court rulings that had granted habeas petitions to two Mexican nationals, Victor Buenrostro-Mendez and Jose Padron Covarrubias. The panel determined that such individuals qualify as “applicants for admission” under federal immigration law, subjecting them to mandatory detention under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b) rather than discretionary release options available under § 1226(a).

The majority opinion, authored by Circuit Judge Edith Jones, emphasized adherence to statutory text. “The text says what it says, regardless of the decisions of prior administrations,” the court stated, rejecting arguments that the policy represented an unlawful shift from prior interpretations by the Department of Homeland Security and Board of Immigration Appeals.

“By eliminating the exclusion/deportation dichotomy, [Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act] put aliens seeking admission lawfully on equal footing with those who entered without inspection,” Jones wrote. “It seems strange to suggest that Congress would have preserved bond hearings exclusively for unlawful entrants.”

Circuit Judge Dana Douglas dissented. She argued that the Congress, which enacted the 1996 Act, “would be surprised to learn it had also required the detention without bond of two million people.”

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi praised the ruling in a post on X.

“The Fifth Circuit just held illegal aliens can rightfully be detained without bond,” she said. “A significant blow against activist judges who have been undermining our efforts to make America safe again at every turn.

Tonight our @TheJusticeDept attorneys secured yet another crucial legal victory in support of @POTUS Trump’s immigration agenda.

The Fifth Circuit just held illegal aliens can rightfully be detained without bond – a significant blow against activist judges who have been…

— Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) February 7, 2026

The policy, implemented in September 2025, expands mandatory detention beyond arrivals at ports of entry to include illegal immigrants in the U.S. interior, potentially affecting thousands held in facilities across Texas and Louisiana, where the Fifth Circuit holds jurisdiction.

Another Fifth Circuit ruling in September 2025 in W.M.M. v. Trump granted a preliminary injunction against deportations of Venezuelan nationals under the Alien Enemies Act, citing inadequate notice periods for due process.

In that case, the court found seven-day notices insufficient, requiring at least 21 days given detention barriers like limited access to counsel and legal resources.

“Notice must be ‘reasonably calculated, under all the circumstances,’ to afford parties ‘a reasonable time to make an appearance,’” the majority wrote, drawing parallels to challenges in expedited removals and mandatory detentions.

The consolidated appeal stemmed from district court dockets in the Southern District of Texas, where judges had ruled the detainees eligible for bond hearings.