Nicolas Cavieres Gomez v. John Mattos, et al.

District Court, D. Nevada·Decided November 6, 2025·No. 2:25-cv-00975·Unknown

Opinion

NICOLAS CAVIERES GOMEZ, Petitioner, Case No.: 2:25-cv-00975-GMN-BNW vs. ORDER GRANTING PETITION FOR JOHN MATTOS, et al., WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS Respondents. Pending before the Court is Petitioner Nicolas Esteban Cavieres Gomez’s Amended Petition for Habeas Relief under 28 U.S.C. § 2241, (ECF No. 18). Respondents John Mattos, Michael Bernackle, Todd Lyons, Kristi Noem, and Pam Bondi filed a late Response, (ECF No. 28), which the Court accepts.1 Petitioner replied, (ECF No. 30). Because Petitioner is being unlawfully detained, the Court GRANTS the § 2241 Petition. A. Removal Proceedings When the Government wants to remove an individual, the normal path is through removal proceedings, requiring an evidentiary hearing before an Immigration Judge (“IJ”). 8 U.S.C. § 1229a. Removal proceedings determine not only whether an individual may be removed from the United States but also to where he may be removed. In the first instance, the noncitizen is entitled to select a country of removal. Id.; 8 U.S.C. § 1231(b)(2)(A); 8 C.F.R. 1 Accompanying Respondents’ Response is a Motion to Extend Time to File Response, (ECF No. 29). Respondents request leave to file their Response to Petitioner’s First Amended Petition one day late, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 6(b)(1)(B). For good cause appearing, the Court GRANTS the Motion to Extend and considers the Response because Respondents have shown that they failed to act because of excusable neglect. § 1240.10(f). If the noncitizen does not do so, the IJ will designate the country of removal and may also designate alternative countries. 8 C.F.R. § 1240.10(f). Meanwhile, the noncitizen is also entitled to seek various protections, including asylum, statutory withholding of removal, and Convention Against Torture (“CAT”) protections. 8 C.F.R. § 1240.11(c)(1). Some of these protections are discretionary. See e.g., 8 U.S.C. § 1158; 8 C.F.R § 208.2. Others are mandatory, meaning that protection must be given if the conditions are met. Withholding of removal is a mandatory form of protection preventing deportation to the country or countries where an IJ finds that the individual is more than likely to be persecuted. See 8 U.S.C. § 1231(b)(3)(A); 8 C.F.R. § 208.16; see also Moncrieffe v. Holder, 569 U.S. 184, 187 n.1 (2013) (“[T]he Attorney General has no discretion to deny relief to a noncitizen who establishes his eligibility [for withholding of removal or CAT protections].”). CAT protection is a mandatory protection against deportation to a country where the IJ finds that the individual is likely to be tortured. Andrade v. Garland, 94 F.4th 904, 914 (9th Cir. 2024). B. Reinstatement or Withholding-Only Proceedings Alternatively, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) may reinstate a prior order of removal for a noncitizen it finds “has reentered the United States illegally after having been removed or having departed voluntarily, under an order of removal.” 8 U.S.C. § 1231(a)(5). When DHS reinstates a removal order, the “prior order of removal is reinstated

from its original date and is not subject to being reopened or reviewed.” Id. DHS may also issue administrative removal orders to individuals whom DHS determines are not lawful permanent residents and who have an aggravated felony conviction. See 8 U.S.C. § 1228(b); 8 C.F.R. § 238.1. While noncitizens are barred from pursuing nearly all avenues of relief from removal in both processes, they may still seek protection through withholding of removal under 8 U.S.C. § 1231(b)(3) and CAT. 8 C.F.R. §§ 238.1(f)(3), 241.8(e). If the noncitizen demonstrates a reasonable fear of persecution or torture, the noncitizen is placed in “withholding-only proceedings” before an IJ where they can only seek withholding of removal and/or CAT protection. 8 C.F.R. §§ 208.31(b), (e); see also 8 U.S.C. § 1231(a)(5) (providing that a noncitizen subject to reinstatement “is not eligible and may not apply for any relief under [the Immigration and Nationality Act (“INA”)]”); 8 C.F.R. § 1208.2(c)(3)(i) (“The scope of review in [withholding-only] proceedings. . . shall be limited to a determination of whether the [noncitizen] is eligible for withholding or deferral of removal.”). Withholding of removal and CAT protection only affect where the noncitizen may be removed, rather than whether the noncitizen may be removed; thus, even if a noncitizen prevails on his withholding or CAT claim, the removal order remains valid and enforceable, albeit not executable to the specific country as to which the noncitizen has demonstrated a likelihood of persecution or death. See 8 U.S.C. § 1231(b)(2)(E); 8 C.F.R. § 1208.16(f); Johnson v. Guzman Chavez, 594 U.S. 523, 536 (2021); Lanza v. Ashcroft, 389 F.3d 917, 933 (9th Cir. 2004) (stating that a grant of withholding “only prohibits removal of the petitioner to the country of risk, but does not prohibit removal to a non-risk country”). C. Third-Country Removals Because the removal proceedings happen on one track, while withholding and CAT proceedings happen on another track, a situation may arise where the Government has an order

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Nicolas Cavieres Gomez v. John Mattos, et al., (D. Nev. 2025).

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