Eldimir Gomes v. Michael Bernake, et al.

District Court, D. Nevada·Decided May 28, 2026·No. 2:26-cv-00420·Unknown

Opinion

ELDIMIR GOMES, Petitioner, Case No.: 2:26-cv-00420-GMN-MDC vs. ORDER GRANTING PETITION FOR MICHAEL BERNAKE, et al.,1 WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS Respondents. Pending before the Court is Petitioner Eldimir Gomes’s First Amended Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus, (ECF No. 9). Federal Respondents Michael Bernacke, Pamela Bondi, Todd M. Lyons, and Kristi Noem filed a Response, (ECF No. 14),2 to which Petitioner replied, (ECF No. 15). For the reasons discussed below, the Court GRANTS the Petition and orders Petitioner’s immediate release. Petitioner Eldimir Gomes is a citizen of Guinea-Bissau who came to the United States in April 2021. (Am. Pet. 2:25–26, ECF No. 9). He entered without inspection but was arrested near the border on April 29, 2021, shortly after his arrival. (Id. 2:26–27); (I-213 at 2, Ex. A to Fed. Resp., ECF No. 14-1). Petitioner was placed in expedited removal proceedings, but after an asylum officer determined that he had a credible fear of persecution or torture, DHS issued a Notice to Appear (“NTA”). (Am. Pet. 2:27–3:2); (Fed. Resp. 1:23–25, ECF No. 14). The NTA, 1 Pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 25(d), Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche is substituted for the currently named Pamela Bondi, and Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin is substituted or currently named Kristi Noem. The Clerk of Court is kindly directed to update the docket to reflect these substitutions. 2 Respondent John Mattos filed a separate Response, (ECF No. 12), indicating that he has no independent authority to release Petitioner, and thus takes no position on the relief sought. issued on May 26, 2021, charged Petitioner as an “alien present in the United States who has not been admitted or paroled.” (NTA, Ex. A to Am. Pet., ECF No. 9-1). In a Notice to EOIR regarding Petitioner’s address, an ICE official indicated that Petitioner was released from ICE custody on bond in the amount of $7,500. (Notice, Ex. B to Am. Pet., ECF No. 9-2). Petitioner has remained out of custody for approximately four years while his removal proceedings have been pending, during which time he applied for asylum and withholding of removal and established a residence with his wife and children in Utah. (Am. Pet. 3:5–8). On July 11, 2025, an Immigration Judge (“IJ”) denied Petitioner relief and ordered him removed. (IJ Order, Ex. C to Am. Pet, ECF No. 9-3). On July 30, 2025, Petitioner was charged with misdemeanor assault and arrested. (I-213 at 2, Ex. A to Fed. Resp.).3 ICE re-detained Petitioner on August 6, 2025. (Am. Pet. 3:11–12).4 Petitioner timely appealed the IJ’s removal order on August 11, 2025, and the appeal remains pending. See EOIR Automated Case Information.5 Petitioner has now been in ICE detention for almost 10 months, and with this Amended Petition, he seeks immediate release from detention. (See generally Am. Pet.). A. Habeas Petitions The Constitution guarantees that the writ of habeas corpus is “available to every individual detained within the United States.” Hamdi v. Rumsfeld, 542 U.S. 507, 525 (2004) (citing U.S. Const., art. I, § 9, cl. 2). “The essence of habeas corpus is an attack by a person in

custody upon the legality of that custody, and . . . the traditional function of the writ is to secure

3 The parties present no evidence corroborating the assertion in the I-213 regarding Petitioner’s misdemeanor assault charge, nor do they provide any additional information about the charge. 4 There is no evidence in the record before the Court relating to when and how ICE detained Petitioner. 5 The Court takes judicial notice of the information on Petitioner’s EOIR Automated Case Information page because it may take judicial notice of information posted on official government websites. See Daniels-Hall v. Nat’l Educ. Ass’n, 629 F.3d 992, 998–999 (9th Cir. 2010); Fed. R. Evid. 201 (allowing a court to take judicial notice of a fact not subject to reasonable dispute in that it is capable of accurate and ready determination by resort to sources whose accuracy cannot reasonably be questioned). release from illegal custody.” Preiser v. Rodriguez, 411 U.S. 475, 484 (1973). A writ of habeas corpus may be granted to a petitioner who demonstrates that he is in custody in violation of the Constitution or federal law. 28 U.S.C. § 2241(c)(3). A district court’s habeas jurisdiction includes challenges to immigration-related detention. Zadvydas v. Davis, 533 U.S. 678, 687 (2001); see also Demore v. Kim, 538 U.S. 510, 517 (2003). B. Statutory Detention Scheme Under the Immigration and Nationality Act (“INA”), 8 U.S.C. §§ 1101 et seq., two statutory provisions generally govern the government’s authority to detain noncitizens during the pendency of removal proceedings: 8 U.S.C. §§ 1225(b) and 1226. In Jennings v. Rodriguez, 538 U.S. 281 (2018), the Supreme Court explained these statutory provisions. The Court explained that § 1225 generally governs “at the Nation’s borders and ports of entry, where the Government must determine whether [a noncitizen] seeking to enter the country is admissible.” Id. at 287. In contrast, § 1226 “generally governs the process of arresting and detaining” noncitizens already “inside the United States.” Id. at 288. Section 1225 authorizes the government to detain certain noncitizens seeking admission into the United States. Id. at 289. Section 1225(b) applies to “applicants for admission” to the United States, defined as a noncitizen “present in the United States who has not been admitted or who arrives in the United States[.]” 8 U.S.C. § 1225(a)(1). “[A]pplicants for admission fall into one of two categories, those covered by § 1225(b)(1) and those covered by § 1225(b)(2).”

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Eldimir Gomes v. Michael Bernake, et al., (D. Nev. 2026).

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