Federal court blocks transfer of immigrant detainees as ACLU of Nevada seeks enforcement of bond hearing ruling

May 26, 2026 9:00 am

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LAS VEGAS – A federal judge temporarily blocked the transfer of 25 immigrant detainees out of Nevada after ACLU of Nevada attorneys filed an emergency motion in an ongoing class action lawsuit that restored access to bond hearings for class detainees who were denied those bond hearings as their immigration cases moved forward.

The emergency motion was filed after attorneys learned that 25 potential class members were scheduled to be transferred out of Nevada. ACLUNV attorneys argued the temporary stay was necessary to preserve the court’s jurisdiction and ensure detainees could seek relief under the court’s earlier ruling. U.S. District Judge Richard Boulware issued an order temporarily stopping the transfers and directing federal officials to facilitate attorney access to the detainees while the court reviews their cases.

Following the order, ACLUNV filed multiple habeas petitions on behalf of detainees they identified as potential class members entitled to bond hearings under the court’s earlier ruling in Jacobo-Ramirez v. Mullin. In responses filed on May 11, federal officials acknowledged that many of the detainees named in the petitions qualify as class members under the court’s ruling.

The habeas petitions remain pending before the court.

ACLU of Nevada executive director Athar Haseebullah said:

“These detainees remain entitled to bond hearings under the court’s ruling, regardless of where they are transferred. When we learned that potential class members were scheduled for transfer out of Nevada, we were not going to simply sit back and hope the government would properly enforce the court’s ruling on its own. The court’s order on this has helped preserve the integrity of our legal system in an era where due process rights are being trampled upon.”

About Jacobo-Ramirez v. Mullin

For decades, people living in the U.S. who were later detained by immigration agents were entitled to a bond hearing under federal law, but a change in DHS policies stripped people, including those with no criminal record and years of residence, of the opportunity to be released on bond.

In March 2026, the Nevada U.S. District Court ruled that the federal government unlawfully subjected qualifying detainees to mandatory detention without access to bond considerations. The ruling applies to certain noncitizens arrested by ICE inside the United States who are detained in Nevada and placed in removal proceedings. The court also vacated a federal policy that had justified denying bond hearings to members of the certified class.

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Court Case
Apr 22, 2026
Graphic featuring the ACLU of Nevada logo on the left and the case title ‘Jacobo-Ramirez et al. v. Mullin’ on the right. The background shows a blurred image of a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services document, tinted in blue.
  • Immigrants' Rights

Jacobo-Ramirez et al. v. Mullin

We filed a class action lawsuit, in collaboration with the ACLU and the UNLV Immigration Clinic, against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), challenging a new federal policy that unlawfully denied immigrants their right to a bond hearing. For decades, people who were living in the U.S. and later detained by immigration authorities were entitled to a bond hearing under federal law. The DHS has now reversed this precedent by reclassifying these longtime residents as “applicants for admission,” thereby stripping them of their right to ask a judge for release. Now, under this new policy, anyone who entered the United States without inspection is detained while their immigration case moves forward without the opportunity for a bond hearing, also known as a custody redetermination hearing. This is a direct attack on due process. People who have lived in Nevada for years are now being held for prolonged periods of time in civil detention facilities without knowing when, or if, they’ll ever see a judge. Our class action seeks to reaffirm the right to a bond hearing for immigrants arrested inside of the United States and prevent them from being unlawfully detained without the possibility of release and in violation of their due process rights. UPDATE: On March 26, 2026, a federal court granted partial summary judgment, ruling that the Department of Homeland Security's mandatory detention policies are unlawful, restoring access to bond hearings for undocumented immigrants.