Joaquin Herrera Avila v. Pamela Bondi, Attorney General; Kristi Noem, Secretary, U.S. Department of Homeland Security; Todd M. Lyons, Acting Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Sirce Owen, Acting Director for Executive Office for Immigration Review; Peter Berg, Director, Fort Snelling Field Office Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Ryan Shea, Sheriff of Freeborn County; Samuel Olson, Director, St. Paul Field Office Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Executive Office for Immigration Review; and U.S. Department of Homeland Security

District Court, D. Minnesota·Decided October 21, 2025·No. 0:25-cv-03741·Unknown

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT DISTRICT OF MINNESOTA JOAQUIN HERRERA AVILA, Civil No. 25-3741 (JRT/SGE) Petitioner,

v. MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER ON PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS PAMELA BONDI, Attorney General; KRISTI CORPUS NOEM, Secretary, U.S. Department of Homeland Security; TODD M. LYONS, Acting Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement; SIRCE OWEN, Acting Director for Executive Office for Immigration Review; PETER BERG, Director, Fort Snelling Field Office Immigration and Customs Enforcement; RYAN SHEA, Sheriff of Freeborn County; SAMUEL OLSON, Director, St. Paul Field Office Immigration and Customs Enforcement; 1 IMMIGRATION AND CUSTOMS ENFORCEMENT; EXECUTIVE OFFICE FOR IMMIGRATION REVIEW; and U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY,

Respondents.

Cameron Lane Youngs Giebink, David L. Wilson, and Katherine Lourdes Santamaria El Bayoumi, WILSON LAW GROUP, 3019 Minnehaha Avenue, Minneapolis, MN 55406, for Petitioner.

1 The Court notes that Samuel Olson was not named as a Respondent in the Petition, but he was named in subsequent filings. Because the Respondents also name Olson as a Respondent and do not object to his exclusion from the Petition, the Court will assume that Olson’s exclusion was a mistake and will add Olson as a Respondent to the Petition. Ana H. Voss, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY’S OFFICE, 300 South Fourth Street, Suite 600, Minneapolis, MN 55415, for Respondents Pamela Bondi, Kristi Noem, Todd M. Lyons, Sirce Owen, Peter Berg, Samuel Olson, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Executive Office for Immigration Review, and U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

David John Walker, FREEBORN COUNTY ATTORNEY’S OFFICE, Freeborn County Government Center, 411 South Broadway Avenue, Albert Lea, MN 56007, for Respondent Ryan Shea.

Petitioner Joaquin Herrera Avila filed a Verified Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus and a Motion for Temporary Restraining Order. The Court held a status conference on October 2, 2025, at which the parties consented to the Court deciding the merits of the habeas petition. Because Petitioner is being unlawfully detained, the Court will grant his habeas petition to the extent that he seeks an order requiring Respondents to provide him a bond hearing before the immigration judge under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a). The Court will also order that Petitioner not be moved outside the District of Minnesota before the court ordered bond hearing. As a result, Petitioner’s motion for a temporary restraining order will be denied as moot. BACKGROUND I. STATUTORY AND REGULATORY FRAMEWORK In general, under federal immigration law, two statutes govern the detention of noncitizens pending removal proceedings—8 U.S.C. §§ 1225 and 1226. Petitioner argues that he is subject to the discretionary detention framework set forth in 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a), which requires that Petitioner be provided a bond hearing, and Respondents argue that Petitioner is subject to mandatory detention under § 1225(b)(2). The Court will address each statutory provision in turn.

Section 1225 applies to “applicants for admission”—aliens who are either “present in the United States who ha[ve] not been admitted” or who “arrive[] in the United States.” 8 U.S.C. § 1225(a)(1). Applicants for admission fall under either § 1225(b)(1) or § 1225(b)(2). Jennings v. Rodriguez, 583 U.S. 281, 287 (2018). “Section 1225(b)(1) applies

to aliens initially determined to be inadmissible due to fraud, misrepresentation, or lack of valid documentation” as well as “certain other aliens designated by the Attorney General in his discretion.” Id. (citations omitted).2 Section 1225(b)(2) serves as a “catchall

provision that applies to” almost all other applicants for admission not covered by § 1225(b)(1). Id. at 289. Respondents contend that Petitioner is being detained under § 1225(b)(2). Section 1225(b)(2)(A) provides that “in the case of an alien who is an applicant for admission, if

the examining immigration officer determines that an alien seeking admission is not clearly and beyond a doubt entitled to be admitted, the alien shall be detained for a proceeding under section 1229a,” which addresses removal proceedings.

2 Aliens subject to § 1225(b)(1) “are normally ordered removed ‘without further hearing or review’ pursuant to an expedited removal process” unless they “indicate[] either an intention to apply for asylum . . . or a credible fear of persecution,” in which case the alien is then referred for an asylum interview. Jennings, 583 U.S. at 287 (quoting § 1225(b)(1)(A)). Neither party contends that § 1225(b)(1) applies to Petitioner. Section 1226—which Petitioner contends governs his detention—applies to the apprehension and detention of aliens who are already present in the country and eligible

for removal. See Jennings, 583 U.S. at 288; Rodriguez Diaz v. Garland, 53 F.4th 1189, 1196 (9th Cir. 2022). Section 1226(a) establishes a discretionary process: on an arrest warrant issued by the Attorney General, an alien may be arrested and detained while a decision on whether the alien should be removed is pending. Except as provided in § 1226(c),

which applies to the detention of criminal aliens, the Attorney General (1) may detain the arrested alien, (2) may release the alien on bond of at least $1,500, with conditions, or (3) may release the alien on conditional parole. 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a).3

In short, 8 U.S.C. § 1225 allows “the Government to detain certain aliens seeking admission into the country,” and § 1226 “authorizes the Government to detain certain

3 Section 1226(c) imposes mandatory detention on a defined group of aliens, comprising of aliens who fall within “enumerated categories involving criminal offenses and terrorist activities.” Jennings, 583 U.S. at 289. Individuals who are subject to mandatory detention include specific categories of “inadmissible” aliens. See 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c)(1)(A), (D), (E). In January 2025, Congress passed the Laken Riley Act, which expanded § 1226(c)’s mandatory detention requirement to a new class of noncitizens, as long as two requirements are satisfied. Laken Riley Act, Pub. L. No. 119-1, 139 Stat. 3 (2025); 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c)(1)(E).

The Laken Riley Act amendments mandate detention for noncitizens who are inadmissible under Sections 1182(a)(6)(A) (the inadmissibility ground for a noncitizen “present in the United States without being admitted or paroled”), 1182(a)(6)(C) (the inadmissibility ground for misrepresentation), or 1182(a)(7) (the inadmissibility ground for lacking valid documentation) and have been arrested for, charged with, or convicted of certain crimes.

Maldonado v. Olson, No. 25-3142, 2025 WL 2374411, at *10 (D. Minn. Aug. 15, 2025) (citing Laken Riley Act, Pub. L. No. 119-1, 139 Stat. 3 (2025); 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c)(1)(E)).

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Joaquin Herrera Avila v. Pamela Bondi, Attorney General; Kristi Noem, Secretary, U.S. Department of Homeland Security; Todd M. Lyons, Acting Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Sirce Owen, Acting Director for Executive Office for Immigration Review; Peter Berg, Director, Fort Snelling Field Office Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Ryan Shea, Sheriff of Freeborn County; Samuel Olson, Director, St. Paul Field Office Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Executive Office for Immigration Review; and U.S. Department of Homeland Security, (mnd 2025).

Joaquin Herrera Avila v. Pamela Bondi, Attorney General; Kristi Noem, Secretary, U.S. Department of Homeland Security; Todd M. Lyons, Acting Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Sirce Owen, Acting Director for Executive Office for Immigration Review; Peter Berg, Director, Fort Snelling Field Office Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Ryan Shea, Sheriff of Freeborn County; Samuel Olson, Director, St. Paul Field Office Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Executive Office for Immigration Review; and U.S. Department of Homeland Security (Joaquin Herrera Avila v. Pamela Bondi, Attorney General; Kristi Noem, Secretary, U.S. Department of Homeland Security; Todd M. Lyons, Acting Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Sirce Owen, Acting Director for Executive Office for Immigration Review; Peter Berg, Director, Fort Snelling Field Office Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Ryan Shea, Sheriff of Freeborn County; Samuel Olson, Director, St. Paul Field Office Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Executive Office for Immigration Review; and U.S. Department of Homeland Security) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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