Henry Edilberto Castillo Valderrama v. Warden of Mesa Verde Detention Facility, et al.

District Court, E.D. California·Decided June 26, 2026·No. 1:26-cv-01760·Unknown

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

HENRY EDILBERTO CASTILLO Case No. 1:26-cv-01760-KES-SAB-HC VALDERRAMA, FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATION TO Petitioner, GRANT PETITION FOR WRIT OF v. RESPONDENTS TO PROVIDE PETITIONER WITH BOND HEARING WARDEN OF MESA VERDE DETENTION FACILITY, et al., ORDER GRANTING PETITIONER’S APPLICATION TO PROCEED IN FORMA Respondents. PAUPERIS

(ECF No. 2) Petitioner is an immigration detainee proceeding pro se with a petition for writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241. I. Petitioner is a citizen of Colombia who entered the United States on or about September 28, 2021. Petitioner was issued a notice to appear and released on an order of recognizance. (ECF No. 11-1 at 31; ECF Nos. 11-2, 11-3.) On December 9, 2021, Petitioner was arrested for perjury, forgery, grand theft, and driving without a license. (ECF No. 11-4 at 4–5.) On July 17, 2024, Petitioner was convicted of attempted grand theft. (Id. at 6.) On May 24, 2023, Petitioner was arrested for driving under the influence and was convicted on February 7, 2025. (ECF No. 11-4 at 6–7.) Petitioner was scheduled for an in-person check-in due to multiple program violations and on December 15, 2025, Petitioner was taken into U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) custody. (ECF No. 11-1 at 2–3.) On March 4, 2026, Petitioner filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus raising a prolonged detention due process claim. (ECF No. 1 at 9–20.) The Court construed the petition “as [also] raising claims challenging Petitioner’s re-detention and the statutory authority of Petitioner’s detention.” (ECF No. 7 at 1.) On March 27, 2026, Respondents filed an answer, and Petitioner filed a traverse on April 20, 2026. (ECF Nos. 11, 12.) II. A. Statutory Framework and Applicability of 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c)(1)(E) An intricate statutory scheme governs the detention of noncitizens during removal proceedings and after a final removal order is issued. “Where an alien falls within this statutory scheme can affect whether his detention is mandatory or discretionary, as well as the kind of review process available to him if he wishes to contest the necessity of his detention.” Prieto- Romero v. Clark, 534 F.3d 1053, 1057 (9th Cir. 2008). “Four statutes grant the Government authority to detain noncitizens who have been placed in removal proceedings: 8 U.S.C. §§ 1225(b) (‘Section 1225(b)’), 1226(a) (‘Subsection A’), 1226(c) (‘Subsection C’), and 1231(a) (‘Section 1231(a)’).” Avilez v. Garland, 69 F.4th 525, 529 (9th Cir. 2023). “Subsection A is the default detention statute for noncitizens in removal proceedings and applies to noncitizens ‘[e]xcept as provided in [Subsection C].’” Avilez, 69 F.4th at 529 (alterations in original) (quoting 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a)). “[D]etention under Subsection A is discretionary” and “provides for release on bond or conditional parole.” Avilez, 69 F.4th at 529. “When a person is apprehended under § 1226(a), an ICE officer makes the initial custody determination,” and the noncitizen “will be released if he ‘demonstrate[s] to the satisfaction of the officer that such release would not pose a danger to property or persons, and 1189, 1196 (9th Cir. 2022) (quoting 8 C.F.R. § 236.1(c)(8)). Although section 1226(a) sets out a discretionary detention scheme, section 1226(c) provides an exception which mandates detention for certain criminal noncitizens. See 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c)(1)(E). Section 1226(c)(1)(E), which was added to the statute in 2025 by the Laken Riley Act, mandates detention for any noncitizen (i) who is inadmissible under section 1182(a)(6)(A)(i) as an “alien present in the United States without being admitted or paroled,” and (ii) who “is charged with, arrested for, convicted of, or admits” to committing certain crimes. Lepe v. Andrews, 801 F. Supp. 3d 1104, 1115 (E.D. Cal. 2025) (quoting 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c)(1)(E)). Accord J.S.H.M v. Wofford, No. 1:25-CV-01309 JLT SKO, 2025 WL 2938808, at *12 (E.D. Cal. Oct. 16, 2025). To avoid “serious due process concerns,” “courts have construed the Laken Riley Act to apply only where an individual is currently charged with or arrested for the enumerated crimes[.]” Singh v. Chestnut, No. 1:26-CV-00546-DJC-AC, 2026 WL 266021, at *2 (E.D. Cal. Feb. 2, 2026). Thus, “mandatory detention is not required when charges are never filed, Helbrum v. Williams Olson, No. 4:25-cv-00349-SHL-SBJ, 2025 WL 2840273, at *6 (S.D. Iowa Sept. 30, 2025), or where an individual has been acquitted, E.C. v. Noem, No. 2:25-cv-01789-RFB-BNW, 2025 WL 2916264, at *10 (D. Nev. Oct. 14, 2025).” Singh, 2026 WL 266021, at *2. Courts have found serious questions going to the merits as to the application of the Laken Riley Act where noncitizens were arrested but prosecutors ultimately declined to file charges and closed the case. Singh, 2026 WL 266021, at *2; S.E. v. Noem, No. 1:26-cv-00356-DAD-SCR, 2026 WL 206085 (E.D. Cal. Jan. 27, 2026). Respondents argue that “Petitioner’s detention is mandatory under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c)(1)(E)” due to Petitioner’s grand theft conviction. (ECF No. 11 at 3.) Section 1226(c)(1) provides that the “Attorney General shall take into custody any alien who—” (E)(i) is inadmissible under paragraph (6)(A), (6)(C), or (7) of section 1182(a) of this title; and (ii) is charged with, is arrested for, is convicted of, admits having committed, or admits committing acts which constitute the essential elements of any burglary, theft, larceny, shoplifting, or assault of a law enforcement officer offense, or any crime that results in death or serious bodily injury to another person, 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c)(1)(E)(i)–(ii). And “[f]or purposes of paragraph (1)(E), the terms ‘burglary’, have the meanings given such terms in the jurisdiction in which the acts occurred.” 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c)(2). On its face, the Laken Riley Act appears to apply to Petitioner, given that he has been charged with being inadmissible pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1182(a)(6)(A), (ECF No. 11-2 at 1), and was convicted of one of the enumerated crimes in § 1226(c)(1)(E)(ii), (ECF No. 11-4 at 6). Although Petitioner filed a traverse, it does not address the applicability of the Laken Riley Act whatsoever. Accordingly, the Court recommends finding that Petitioner is subject to mandatory detention pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c)(1)(E) and thus is not entitled to habeas relief on the construed claims challenging Petitioner’s re-detention and the statutory authority of Petitioner’s detention. B. Overview of Caselaw Regarding Immigration Detention Statutes “[I]n a series of decisions since 2001, ‘the Supreme Court and [the Ninth Circuit] have grappled in piece-meal fashion with whether the various detention statutes may authorize indefinite or p

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Henry Edilberto Castillo Valderrama v. Warden of Mesa Verde Detention Facility, et al., (E.D. Cal. 2026).

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