Western District of Pennsylvania • 3:26-cv-00274

#1

Feb 19, 2026

PETITION for Writ of Habeas Corpus (Filing fee $5, receipt number APAWDC-9374153), filed by JOSE BARAHONA CRUZ. (Attachments: # 1 Civil Cover Sheet, # 2 Exhibit A ICE Inmate Locator, # 3 Exhibit B Asylum Receipt) (Robles, Albert) (Entered: 02/19/2026)

#2

Feb 19, 2026

CASE MANAGEMENT ORDER. Signed by Judge Christy Criswell Wiegand on 2/19/2026. (bjw) (Entered: 02/19/2026)

Feb 19, 2026

Judge Christy Criswell Wiegand added. (kss)

#3

Feb 20, 2026

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE by JOSE BARAHONA CRUZ re 1 Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus, 2 Case Management Order (Robles, Albert) (Entered: 02/20/2026)

Feb 20, 2026

CLERK'S REQUEST FOR CORRECTIVE ACTION re 3 Certificate of Service. ERROR: No case number on document. CORRECTION: Filer is directed to file the document with a corrected case number using the Errata event. (kss)

#4

Feb 24, 2026

Errata re 3 Certificate of Service by JOSE BARAHONA CRUZ. Reason for Correction: Correction of case number. (Robles, Albert) (Entered: 02/24/2026)

#5

Mar 05, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Adam N. Hallowell on behalf of PAMELA BONDI, KRISTI NOEM, MICHAEL ROSE, WARDEN OF MOSHANNON VALLEY PROCESSING CENTER. (Hallowell, Adam) (Entered: 03/05/2026)

#6

Mar 06, 2026

ORDER AMENDING 2 Case Management Order. The Court has reviewed the Petition and supporting materials, and finds that the threshold issue concerns 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. Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the 2 Case Management Order provisions regarding the timing and substance of Respondents' Response to the Petition are amended as follows: 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 shall file a response to the Petition on or before 3/13/26. Responses are limited to 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 3/13/26 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. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the provision of the 2 Case Management Order setting a 30 day response time period is hereby VACATED. Signed by Judge Christy Criswell Wiegand on 3/6/2026. 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: 03/06/2026)

Mar 06, 2026

Order

#7

Mar 13, 2026

RESPONSE to 1 Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus, filed by PAMELA BONDI, KRISTI NOEM, MICHAEL T ROSE, WARDEN OF MOSHANNON VALLEY PROCESSING CENTER. (Hallowell, Adam) (Entered: 03/13/2026)

#8

Mar 25, 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 detained by Respondents at Moshannon Valley Processing Center, seeks, inter alia, immediate release from custody or, in the alternative, 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). ECF No. 7. 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. In particular, for the reasons set forth in this Court's prior decisions, the Court DENIES Petitioner's request for costs and attorney fees pursuant to the Equal Access to Justice Act, 28 U.S.C. § 2412(d) because Respondents' position, while incorrect, was substantially justified. See Orellana Rivas v. Oddo et al., No. 3:26-cv-246-CCW, ECF No. 14 (W.D. Pa. Mar. 10, 2026) (Wiegand, J.). The Clerk of Court is directed to mark this case CLOSED. Signed by Judge Christy Criswell Wiegand on 3/25/2026. 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: 03/25/2026)

Mar 25, 2026

Order Dismissing Case