By Rajwa Quasim
The Trump administration’s aggressive immigration detention policy has flooded federal courts with an unprecedented wave of immigration-related cases. Over the past year, federal judges have ruled against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention policies more than 16,000 times.
The surge traces back to a two-page memo ICE issued in July 2025 that broadened mandatory detention without bond to cover not just immigrants caught crossing the border illegally, but any undocumented immigrant living in the country for years.
According to the memo, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) changed its interpretation of which detention rules apply to “applicants for admission.” The key change was from applying Section 236 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) in certain cases to applying Section 235. Section 236 generally allows ICE to detain certain people in removal proceedings while permitting an immigration judge to consider whether they should be released on bond. Meanwhile, Section 235 provides for mandatory detention of applicants for admission who are not clearly entitled to enter the U.S.
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Under new interpretation, a person who is already inside the U.S. but was never formally admitted or paroled can still be treated as an “applicant for admission.” Thus, the framework covers a much broader group including people who have families, jobs, and no criminal records.
According to Politico, around 469 judges concluded the memo was unlawful with just 54 judges sided with the administration.
“I didn’t go into it saying, ‘I’m going to free all these people,’ but … we’ve got to get to these cases right now. Get to the cases right away,” said Judge Troy Nunley, the chief judge in the Eastern District of California.
As per the U.S. District Judge Fred Biery, his courthouse typically handles about 1,500 lawsuit a year but had already reached roughly 4,000 cases by May. This increase is seen throughout the country, placing heavy pressure on federal courts. Since the policy came into effect, analysis found that judges ruled against ICE detention policies in roughly 90% of the cases. In Eastern District of California, four habeas cases were registered in 2021, but in 2026 May alone, the court handled over 675 habeas cases. Thus, forcing judges to be brought in from Hawaii and other locations.
The Justice Department has fought the rulings in every case. It also appealed to the circuit courts that have been since split on the issue. This could finally send the question to the Supreme Court in its coming term. “This administration remains fully determined to carry out the president’s immigration priorities,” the Justice Department said in a statement to Politico. “Legal challenges from activist judges will not deter the Department of Justice from enforcing the law and restoring order to our immigration system.”
DHS offered a blunt reply when asked whether the Trump administration had any concerns about its mass detention policy affect the families of those detained by ICE, the spokesperson said, “No.”
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The administration is also seen fast tracking measures into directly deporting hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers without interview and other measures.
An immigration attorney Simon Sandoval Moshenberg criticized the courts, saying, “The immigration judges seem to know they’re in a race and the district judges don’t.” While some federal judges moved quickly on detainees’ cases, it varies by courthouse where some even take weeks or month to rule on petitions. Meanwhile, the immigration courts which are part of the executive branch are issuing deportation orders at a rapid pace.
According to a Homeland Security spokesperson, the department has deported nearly one million undocumented immigrants as of July 12.
The Operation Metro Surge had also faced criticism after its launch by the DHS in December 2025 for widespread community disruption, intense local protest and significant legal and human rights controversies. The department had deployed around 3,000 ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents primarily in Twin Cities (Minneapolis and Saint Paul). The operation winded down in February. DHS agents shot at least three people, including Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti.