What Is Habeas Corpus? And Why Are So Many Detained Immigrants Filing It?
A plain-English guide for families in Florida
By Angelica Pichardo | Law Office of Angelica Pichardo
If you have a loved one who was just picked up by ICE, you have probably heard the words "habeas corpus" thrown around a lot lately.
So what is it really? And why is everyone talking about it right now? Let's break it down in simple words.
Habeas corpus, in plain English
"Habeas corpus" is Latin. It means, more or less, "you have the body." It is one of the oldest legal protections in the United States.
Here is the basic idea: the government is not allowed to lock someone up forever without a good legal reason. If you believe the government is holding a person in a way that breaks the law, you can ask a federal judge to take a look. The judge then asks the government a simple question: "Why are you holding this person?" If the government cannot give a good legal answer, the judge can order the person released.
A habeas corpus petition is the document that asks the judge to do this. It is filed in federal court — not in immigration court. That difference matters a lot, and we will come back to it.
Why are so many detained immigrants filing habeas petitions right now?
For years, many people arrested by ICE could ask the immigration judge for a bond. A bond is like bail. You pay an amount of money, you go home, and you fight your case from the outside. That is how a lot of families got through it.
That option used to be available to two groups. The first group is people who were admitted to the United States. "Admitted" means an immigration officer actually inspected your papers and let you in with permission. For example, with a visitor visa, a student visa, a work visa, or as a lawful permanent resident. People who came in with a visa and later overstayed are still considered "admitted." For decades, those folks could go straight to the immigration judge and ask for bond.
The second group is people who crossed the border without going through inspection or without the proper entry documents. We often call these cases "EWI" — entered without inspection. Until very recently, EWIs could also go to the immigration judge and ask for bond. That is important to understand, because the recent change in the law affects this group specifically.
There is, however, a third category that has not been bond-eligible in front of an immigration judge for quite some time: "arriving aliens." Those are people who showed up at a port of entry and asked to come in but did not have the right entry documents. For example, many people who present at the border to ask for asylum. The law has always treated arriving aliens differently. In these instances, it is still advisable to speak with an experienced habeas attorney to confirm what options may exist.
What changed in September 2025 was the rule for the EWI group.
What happened: Matter of Yajure-Hurtado
In September 2025, the Board of Immigration Appeals (called the "BIA") decided a case called Matter of Yajure-Hurtado. In that decision, the BIA said that immigration judges no longer have the power to give bond to EWIs — people who came into the United States without ever being admitted by an immigration officer.
In plain words: if you came into the country without proper documents (e.g. a visa) — even many years ago, even if you have a family, a job, no criminal record, and have lived here peacefully for a decade — the immigration judge is no longer allowed to give you a bond. You stay locked up while your case moves forward.
That was a huge change. Almost overnight, a door that used to be open for hundreds of thousands of people slammed shut.
So where does habeas come in?
Here is the good news. The BIA is part of the immigration court system. But federal district court judges are a separate and more powerful branch of the government. A federal judge can review what the BIA did and decide whether holding someone with no bond hearing is actually legal under the U.S. Constitution.
That is exactly what a habeas petition asks the federal judge to do.
What this means in Florida
Florida is a tough state for immigration cases. We sit in the Eleventh Circuit, which has its own rules. But that does not mean families in Florida are out of options. Federal judges across Florida are hearing habeas petitions from EWI detainees right now.
In late November 2025, a federal court in California (in a case called Maldonado Bautista v. Santacruz) agreed with immigrants and said the government was holding EWI detainees in a way that broke the law. But that case is just one piece of a much bigger fight. The same legal questions are now being argued in federal courts all across the country. The Eleventh Circuit (the federal appeals court that covers Florida, Georgia, and Alabama) has not yet issued a decision on this issue as of the date of this post. We are anxiously awaiting their ruling. In the meantime, habeas has opened a real path back to freedom for many families.
Here is what I want every family to understand, especially those in Florida.
Time is everything. The moment your loved one is detained, the clock starts. Filing a habeas petition takes real preparation and has to be carefully drafted. Every day you wait is another day your loved one sits inside.
Do not assume bond court is your first stop. In Florida, after Yajure-Hurtado, asking the immigration judge for a bond hearing in an EWI case is often a dead end. The judge will likely say, "I do not have the power to give you bond." You may have wasted weeks. For most EWI cases in Florida, habeas in federal court is the first real path, not the second.
That said, districts and judges can vary across the country. However, an attorney who regularly handles immigration cases in Florida will know you can generally file a habeas immediately, no need to go to bond court first. That is why this is not a do-it-yourself situation, and not even a one-attorney situation. Talk to someone experienced from day one.
Habeas does not stop the removal case. This part is important. When you file a habeas petition, you are fighting one battle: getting your loved one out of detention. The deportation case in immigration court keeps moving in the background. You need both lines of defense running at the same time.
Talk to an experienced habeas attorney from day one. Not every immigration attorney handles federal habeas work. It is a different kind of case, in a different court, with different rules. If your removal attorney does not file habeas petitions personally, that is okay, most good attorneys will refer you to a trusted colleague who does. Each state bar's lawyer referral service can also point you in the right direction.
The worst thing a family can do right now is wait. Wait to "see what happens" or wait because someone said, "let's try for bond first." For EWI cases in Florida, that waiting can be the difference between release and continued detention.
A note from my own practice
Even now, I still get phone calls from detainees and their families months after they were taken into custody, and they have never once spoken to a habeas attorney. It breaks my heart every single time. Because in these cases, every day counts. Months that could have been spent fighting in federal court are gone. Months that the family could have had their loved one home are gone. That is exactly why I am writing this post. I want every Florida family to have the right information from day one — not month two, four, or six.
What to do today
If your husband, wife, son, daughter, brother, sister, or parent has been detained by ICE in Florida, please do these three things:
- Write down everything you know — when they were taken, where they are being held, the A-number on their paperwork, and their immigration history.
- Reach out to an immigration attorney as soon as possible to start defending the removal case.
- Ask that attorney directly: "Do you file federal habeas petitions, or do you have a colleague you trust who does?" Make sure that conversation happens within days, not weeks.
The law is changing quickly right now. New decisions come out every month that may help or hurt your loved one's situation. But one thing has not changed: families who act early have far more options than families who wait.
About the author: Angelica Pichardo is an immigration attorney and the founder of the Law Office of Angelica Pichardo. Learn more about her practice here. You can also call her office at (813) 365-7015.
This blog post is for general information only. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Immigration law is changing rapidly, and every case is different. Please speak with a licensed attorney about your specific situation.