The Trump administration has implemented a sweeping policy change that will force millions of migrants who entered the United States illegally to remain detained throughout their deportation proceedings, eliminating the decades-old practice of bond hearings.
Acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Todd M. Lyons announced the policy shift in a July 8 memo to agents, stating that migrants will no longer be eligible for bond hearings and must be detained “for the duration of their removal proceedings.”
The memo explained that the Department of Homeland Security and Justice Department “revisited its legal position on detention and release authorities” and concluded that migrants “may not be released from ICE custody.”
This policy reversal marks a significant departure from legal standards that have governed migrant detention for decades and represents a key component of the Trump administration’s expanded deportation efforts.
Former Biden administration homeland security official Tom Jawetz described the change as “a radical departure that could explode the detention population.”
Under previous procedures, individuals facing deportation could request bond hearings before immigration judges.
When judges granted bond, migrants could be released into communities while their deportation cases proceeded through the court system.
ICE’s annual report revealed that as of last year,