Story perspectives

2nd Circuit Blocks Trump Mandatory Detention Rule, Splits Courts

4/29/2026

Summary

Story summary

The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected U.S. President Donald Trump administration’s mandatory-detention rule, creating an appellate split that may prompt Supreme Court review.
Joseph Bianco, Jose Cabranes and Alison Nathan declared rule illegal in Connecticut, New York and Vermont.
The panel said the policy would impose the broadest mass-detention-without-bond mandate, restoring bond hearings for non-citizens.
DHS maintains policy follows the law despite about 60,000 detainees—70 % without convictions—remaining held.

History

Historical Context

President Bill Clinton signed the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act, effective April 1 1997, expanding mandatory detention and reinstatement of removal after the 1993 World Trade Center and 1995 Oklahoma City bombings. The law drove deportations from about 50,000 to over 200,000 annually by the early 2000s. The 2nd U.S. Circuit now challenges a similar broad-detention rule, threatening that precedent.

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Story summary

The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected U.S. President Donald Trump administration’s mandatory-detention rule, creating an appellate split that may prompt Supreme Court review.
Joseph Bianco, Jose Cabranes and Alison Nathan declared rule illegal in Connecticut, New York and Vermont.
The panel said the policy would impose the broadest mass-detention-without-bond mandate, restoring bond hearings for non-citizens.
DHS maintains policy follows the law despite about 60,000 detainees—70 % without convictions—remaining held.

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