Petitioner filed a writ of habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2241 after the Department of Homeland Security changed its interpretation of federal immigration law and relied on 8 U.S.C. § 1225 to detain respondent instead of section 1226, as the agency had done in the past. The Seventh Circuit considered whether section 1226 or 1225 applies to aliens living in the United States, explaining that its decision would determine whether those individuals are subject to mandatory detention or are eligible for bond hearings before an immigration judge. The Seventh Circuit held that petitioner was not “seeking admission” and, as a result, was not covered by Section 1225 and joined the majority of federal circuits that have rejected the government’s changed interpretation of the statutes explaining that the government’s position “rests upon the illogical use of both legal fiction and ordinary meaning for the same term.” (JACKSON-AKIWUMI, concurring and SYKES, dissenting)
Federal 7th Circuit Court
Civil Court
Immigration Law