A federal appeals court dealt a new setback to President Donald Trump's immigration policy by determining that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will not be able to detain immigrants for more than 90 days without giving them the opportunity to appear before a judge to request a bond hearing.

The decision, issued by a panel divided 2-1 of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, based in New Orleans, represents an important change for thousands of people subject to deportation proceedings, especially in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi, where a good part of the country's immigration detention centers are concentrated.

According to official information, the ruling responds to a lawsuit filed by two Mexican citizens and one Honduran citizen, who remained detained under the interpretation adopted by the Trump administration of a federal immigration law that allows the mandatory detention of certain foreigners while their cases are resolved.

The court invokes constitutional due process

Although the same court had supported the government's interpretation of mandatory detention in February, it now clarified that this power does not eliminate constitutional guarantees.

Judge Leslie Southwick, author of the majority opinion and appointed by former President George W. Bush, held that the Fifth Amendment protects the right to due process of all people within the United States, regardless of their nationality.

“It is part of the historic majesty of this ancient founding charter that it makes no exceptions in guaranteeing basic rights to those within our borders, including the right to be heard when personal liberty is violated,” Southwick wrote.

In contrast, Judge Cory Wilson, appointed by Trump, issued a dissenting vote, considering that the majority limits the authority that the Constitution grants Congress to legislate on immigration matters.

The Trump administration anticipates a new court battle

The resolution could benefit thousands of immigrants detained by ICE, not only in the three aforementioned states, but also thousands of immigrants from other states who are transferred to prisons in these states from other entities, since it establishes that, once 90 days of detention have passed, the government must offer a hearing for a judge to determine if the person can face their immigration process in freedom.

The decision also represents support for immigrant defense organizations. Rebecca Cassler, an attorney for the American Immigration Council, welcomed the ruling.

“We are delighted that the panel recognized the fundamental constitutional principle that the due process clause does not allow the government to lock them up indefinitely,” he said.

For its part, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) expressed disagreement with the resolution and assured that the administration maintains confidence in its legal position. In addition, he recalled that last week the government asked the Supreme Court to review a similar case derived from another federal court.

The decision comes at a time when different appeals courts maintain conflicting criteria on the scope of mandatory immigration detention, which increases the possibility that the country's highest court will end up resolving the issue in the coming months.

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