Federal appeals courts strike down ICE mass detention policy twice in one day

Two federal appeals courts struck down the Trump administration's mass ICE detention policy on July 30, 2026, marking the fifth and sixth consecutive legal losses on the issue. The Seventh and Ninth Circuit courts ruled that the government cannot deny bond hearings to immigrants already living in the U.S. by misapplying rules intended for new arrivals. Notably, the Ninth Circuit's opinion was written by a Trump appointee.

Federal appeals court rulings

• ▪Two separate federal appeals courts struck down ICE's mass immigration detention policy on July 30, 2026.
• ▪The Wisconsin-based Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 that the government could not refuse bond hearings to undocumented immigrants already living in the U.S.
• ▪The California-based Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals also issued a 2-1 ruling against the government's detention policy.

Mass detention policy legal interpretation

• ▪The courts found the government improperly applied a rule meant for immigrants "seeking admission" at the U.S. border to those already living in the country.
• ▪The policy targeted immigrants for detention without a hearing, many of whom have lived in the U.S. for years without a criminal record.
• ▪The Ninth Circuit found that the Trump administration had misconstrued decades-old immigration laws to justify its actions.

Circuit court pattern

• ▪Similar rulings against the policy have been issued by the Second, Sixth, Tenth, and Eleventh Circuit courts.
• ▪Only two federal appeals courts have sided with the Trump administration’s mass detention policy.

Trump administration legal losses

• ▪The majority opinion in the Ninth Circuit case was written by Judge Daniel Bress, an appointee of President Donald Trump.
• ▪The rulings on July 30, 2026, marked the Trump administration's fifth and sixth consecutive legal losses on the issue.

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