Appeals court affirms Trump policy of jailing immigrants without bond

"President Donald Trump's administration can continue to detain immigrants without bond, marking a major legal victory for the federal immigration agenda and countering a slew of recent lower court decisions across the country that argued the practice is illegal. A panel of judges on the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on Friday evening that the Department of Homeland Security's decision to deny bond hearings to immigrants arrested across the country is consistent with the constitution and federal immigration law."

"Specifically, circuit judge Edith H. Jones wrote in the 2-1 majority opinion that the government correctly interpreted the Immigration and Nationality Act by asserting that unadmitted aliens apprehended anywhere in the United States are ineligible for release on bond, regardless of how long they have resided inside the United States. Under past administrations, most noncitizens with no criminal record who were arrested away from the border had an opportunity to request a bond hearing while their cases wound through immigration court."

"The plaintiffs in the two separate cases filed last year against the Trump administration were both Mexican nationals who had both lived in the United States for over 10 years and weren't flight risks, their attorneys argued. Neither man had a criminal record, and both were jailed for months last year before a lower Texas court granted them bond in October."

A 5th Circuit panel ruled 2-1 that the Department of Homeland Security may deny bond hearings to immigrants arrested across the country, finding the practice consistent with the Constitution and federal immigration law. Circuit Judge Edith H. Jones wrote that the Immigration and Nationality Act allows mandatory detention of unadmitted aliens apprehended anywhere in the United States, irrespective of how long they have resided in the country. Historically, noncitizens arrested away from the border could request bond hearings and were often released if not criminally convicted. The Trump administration reversed prior policy to impose mandatory detention in July.

Read at www.mercurynews.com