Jose Luis Escobar, a Guatemalan citizen who entered the U.S. with his family in November 2024, was initially released on parole with an ankle monitor after being encountered by immigration officials near San Ysidro, California. ICE later enrolled him in the Intensive Supervision Appearance Program and removed his ankle monitor before re-arresting him in December 2025 and detaining him at California City Detention Facility.
The government argued that Escobar was subject to mandatory detention under expedited removal procedures and categorically ineligible for a bond hearing. But Judge Thurston rejected this position, noting that 'courts nationwide, including this one, have overwhelmingly rejected Respondents' new legal position and found the DHS policy unlawful.' She cited seven similar cases from her own court where she reached the same conclusion between September 2025 and January 2026.
Escobar filed his habeas petition in February 2026 asserting due process violations, and the government responded in March arguing his detention was mandatory under federal immigration law. The case was initially referred to a magistrate judge but Thurston withdrew that reference 'in the interest of justice and to promote judicial and party efficiency.'
The ruling requires the government to provide seven days' advance notice and a bond hearing before a neutral arbiter if they want to re-detain Escobar, with the burden on ICE to prove by clear and convincing evidence that he poses a flight risk or danger to the community. The decision adds to mounting judicial criticism of the Biden administration's immigration detention policies for asylum seekers.