Marvin Rocael Godinez Garcia v. Jeremy Casey, Warden, Imperial Regional Detention Center, Calexico, California; Daniel A. Brightman, Acting Field Office Director, San Diego Office of Detention and Removal, U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement; Todd M. Lyons, Acting Director, Immigration and Customs Enforcement
- Proceeding
- original
- Outcome
- other — 9 (2) If Respondents fail to provide Petitioner a bond hearing
- Area
- civil
- Panel
- James E. Simmons (author)
Analysis
The court considered a petition for a writ of habeas corpus filed by an immigration detainee who was being held under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b)(2) despite a prior ruling requiring detention under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a). The court granted the petition, ordering the government to provide a bond hearing under § 1226(a) within seven days or release the petitioner immediately.
| What the court decided | The model |
|---|---|
Granting the Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus“Accordingly, the Court GRANTS the Petition as follows:” | agree with court The court relied on the respondents' acknowledgment that the petitioner must be considered detained under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) pursuant to the final judgment in Maldonado Bautista v. Santacruz. Because the government conceded the legal basis for the petitioner's status, the court's decision to grant the petition to correct the statutory basis of detention follows logically from the record and the cited authority. |
Ordering a bond determination hearing under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) within seven days“The Court ORDERS Respondents to provide Petitioner with a bond determination hearing, under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a), within seven days of this Order.” | agree with court Since the petitioner is statutorily entitled to be detained under § 1226(a) rather than § 1225(b)(2), he is entitled to a bond hearing under the former statute. The court correctly ordered this relief to effectuate the statutory change. |
Ordering immediate release if the bond hearing is not provided within the specified time“If Respondents fail to provide Petitioner a bond hearing within the specified time period or pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a), the Court ORDERS Petitioner’s immediate release;” | agree with court This is a standard enforcement mechanism in habeas corpus proceedings to ensure compliance with the court's order. It is a reasonable and legally sound directive. |
The order itself: sound — The order is procedurally sound and relies on a specific, cited district court judgment (Maldonado Bautista) to establish the legal premise. The respondents' acknowledgment of this premise removes the need for further legal analysis by the court. The relief ordered is directly tied to the statutory correction mandated by the cited case.
Opinion
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 MARVIN ROCAEL GODINEZ GARCIA, Case No.: 26-cv-187-JES-DEB 12 Petitioner, ORDER GRANTING PETITION FOR 13 v. WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS PURSUANT TO 8 U.S.C. § 2241 14 Jeremy CASEY, Warden, Imperial Regional Detention Center, Calexico, 15 California; Daniel A. BRIGHTMAN, [ECF No. 1] 16 Acting Field Office Director, San Diego Office of Detention and Removal, U.S. 17 Immigrations and Customs Enforcement; 18 Todd M. LYONS, Acting Director, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, 19 U.S. Department of Homeland Security; 20 Sirce OWEN, Acting Director for Executive Office for Immigration Review; 21 Kristi NOEM, Secretary, U.S. Department 22 of Homeland Security; Pam BONDI, Attorney General of the United States, 23 Respondents. 24 25 Before the Court is Petitioner Marvin Rocael Godinez Garcia’s Petition for Writ of 26 Habeas Corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241, which was filed on January 13, 2026. ECF 27 No. 1. Pursuant to the Court’s Order to Show Cause, Respondents filed a Response to the 28 Petition. ECF No. 4. 1 Respondents acknowledged that Petitioner must be considered detained under 8 2 ||U.S.C. § 1226(a), pursuant to the final judgment entered in Maldonado Bautista v. 3 || Santacruz, No. 5:25-CV-01873-SSS-BFM, --- F. Supp. 3d ---, 2025 WL 3289861 (C.D. 4 ||Cal. Nov. 20, 2025). Accordingly, the Court GRANTS the Petition as follows: 5 (1) The Court ORDERS Respondents to provide Petitioner with a bond 6 determination hearing, under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a), within seven days of 7 this Order. At the hearing, Respondents may not deny Petitioner bond 8 on the basis that he is detained under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b)(2). 9 (2) If Respondents fail to provide Petitioner a bond hearing within the 10 specified time period or pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a), the Court 11 ORDERS Petitioner’s immediate release; 12 (3) Respondents are ORDERED to File a Notice of Compliance within five 13 days of providing Petitioner with a bond redetermination hearing, 14 including apprising the Court of the results of the hearing; and 15 (4) The Clerk of Court is DIRECTED to CLOSE the suit after receipt of 16 Respondents’ Notice. 17 IT IS SO ORDERED. 18 || Dated: January 22, 2026 19 Soar Str, 20 Honorable James E. Simmons Jr. 1 United States District Judge 22 23 24 25 26 27 28