Western District of Pennsylvania • 3:26-cv-00258

#1

Feb 18, 2026

Remark: Habeas Petition lodged without Motion for In Forma Pauperis or payment of filing fee (Attachments: # 1 Prisoner Authorization Form) (cel) (Entered: 02/19/2026)

Feb 19, 2026

Judge Christy Criswell Wiegand added. (cel)

#2

Feb 20, 2026

Case Management Order

#3

Feb 24, 2026

Quality Control Message (no filing fee). The Clerk of Court hereby notifies you that your habeas petition was filed without the $5 filing fee or a completed IFP application to waive the fee. Your case will be administratively closed until the Clerk of Court receives your filing fee or completed IFP application. More information can be found at the Court's website: https://www.pawd.uscourts.gov/ Signed by Judge Christy Criswell Wiegand on 2/24/2026. Text-only entry; no PDF document will issue. This text-only entry constitutes the Order of the Court or Notice on the matter. (bjw) (Entered: 02/24/2026)

Feb 24, 2026

Order for Administrative Case Closing

#4

Feb 27, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Douglas C. Maloney on behalf of PAMELA BONDI, DAREN MARGOLIN, KRISTI NOEM, LEONARD ODDO, MICHAEL T. ROSE. (Maloney, Douglas) (Entered: 02/27/2026)

#6

Apr 17, 2026

ATTORNEY Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus (Credit Card Required)

#8

Apr 20, 2026

ORDER AMENDING 2 Case Management Order. Having reviewed the Petition upon the reopening of this case, the Court determines that the Petition likely involves the issue of whether Petitioner is entitled to a bond hearing because he is subject to discretionary detention pursuant to §1226(a) as opposed to mandatory detention pursuant to §1225(b). Based on its prior decisions on this issue, including Gbamoi v. Oddo et al., Civil Action No. 26-cv-108-CCW, ECF No. 10 (W.D. Pa. Feb. 20, 2026) and Orellana Rivas v. Oddo et al., Civil Action No. 26-cv-246-CCW, ECF No. 8 (W.D. Pa. Feb. 23, 2026), the Court tentatively intends to grant the Petition to the extent it requests a bond hearing. If Respondents believe that there are factual or legal differences between this case and the other cases in which the Court has decided the issue, then they may file a response to the Petition on or before 4/27/26 of no more than 25 pages, double-spaced. If Respondents' positions are the same as in the prior cases in which this issue has been raised and decided by the Court, they shall simply state as much in the response, cite to any response or brief previously filed on the issue in this Court, and their positions shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference into the record. Petitioner may file a reply of no more than five double-spaced pages, on or before 5/5/26. Signed by Judge Christy Criswell Wiegand on 4/20/2026. Text-only entry; no PDF document will issue. This text-only entry constitutes the Order of the Court or Notice on the matter. (bjw) (Entered: 04/20/2026)

Apr 20, 2026

Order

#9

Apr 22, 2026

RESPONSE to 6 Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus, filed by PAMELA BONDI, DAREN MARGOLIN, KRISTI NOEM, LEONARD ODDO, MICHAEL T. ROSE. (Maloney, Douglas) (Entered: 04/22/2026)

#10

Apr 22, 2026

ORDER GRANTING IN PART and DENYING IN PART 1 Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241. Petitioner, a noncitizen currently detained by Respondents at the Moshannon Valley Processing Center, seeks an individualized bond hearing before an immigration judge. The parties agree that the issue before the Court is whether Petitioner is subject to discretionary detention pursuant to 8 U.S.C. §1226(a) and therefore entitled to a bond hearing or mandatory detention under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b) and therefore not entitled to a bond hearing. Respondents rely on the BIA's decisions in Matter of Yajure Hurtado, 29 I. & N. Dec. 216 (B.I.A. 2025) and/or Matter of Q. Li, 29 I. & N. Dec. 66 (B.I.A. 2025). The Court is mindful that several United States Courts of Appeals have ruled that noncitizens like Petitioner who have resided in the interior of the country for years are "applicants for admission" subject to mandatory detention. See Buenrostro-Mendez v. Bondi et al, 166 F.4th 494 (5th Cir. 2026); see also Herrera Avila v. Bondi, No. 25-3248, 2026 WL 819258 (8th Cir. Mar. 25, 2026); but see Castanon-Nava v. U.S. Dep't of Homeland Sec., 161 F.4th 1048, 1060-62 (7th Cir. 2025) (holding that the government is unlikely to succeed on the merits of its argument that § 1225(b) governs noncitizens already in the United States whom ICE detained in Chicago). Nonetheless, for the reasons set forth in this Court's prior decisions, the Court concludes that: Petitioner is not required to exhaust administrative remedies as doing so would be futile; and Petitioner is subject to discretionary detention pursuant to § 1226(a) and is therefore entitled to a bond hearing. See, e.g., Zhunio v. Warden et al., No. 3:26-CV-71-CCW, ECF No. 7 (W.D. Pa. Mar. 6, 2026) (Wiegand, J.) (noncitizen who entered the United States without inspection and resided continuously in the interior of the country thereafter subject to discretionary detention pursuant to § 1226(a)); Padilla Ventura v. Rose et al., No. 3:26-cv-65-CCW, ECF No. 13 (W.D. Pa. February 3, 2026) (Wiegand, J.) (same). Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus is GRANTED IN PART, as follows: within seven days of this Order, Petitioner must receive an individualized bond hearing conducted by an immigration judge pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1226. If Petitioner does not receive a bond hearing by that date, or if the immigration judge declines to conduct a bond hearing based on Matter of Yajure Hurtado, Respondents shall immediately release Petitioner from custody. Within seven days of the immigration judge's decision, the parties must file a joint notice on the docket advising the Court of the outcome of the bond hearing. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Petition is DENIED in all other respects. The Clerk of Court is directed to mark this case CLOSED. Signed by Judge Christy Criswell Wiegand on 4/22/2026. Text-only entry; no PDF document will issue. This text-only entry constitutes the Order of the Court or Notice on the matter. (bjw) (Entered: 04/22/2026)

Apr 22, 2026

Order Dismissing Case