Overview
- U.S. District Judge Sunshine S. Sykes vacated a Board of Immigration Appeals decision and declared the administration’s mandatory detention approach unlawful.
- In unusually sharp language, Sykes accused the government of “terror against noncitizens,” “unlawful, wanton acts,” and extending “violence on its own citizens.”
- The order requires the government within a week to notify all detained immigrants in languages they understand and to provide phone access to attorneys within one hour.
- Detained immigrants must be told they can join a lawsuit seeking a bond hearing or immediate release, a step that could affect tens of thousands.
- DHS and ICE criticized the ruling as judicial overreach, asserted they have the law on their side, and said the government will adhere to decisions as it pursues an appeal.