TACOMA, Wash. — Four immigration judges in Washington state have been leading a significant shift in immigration enforcement practices, challenging long-standing American norms.
The recent denial of bail to numerous individuals detained on immigration charges has led to tens of thousands of lawsuits since July, claiming violations of constitutional rights against false imprisonment. This month, the Trump administration faced a legal setback as an appeals court rejected its policy, joining two other courts in the same ruling and raising the likelihood of a Supreme Court review.
The controversial bail denial practice has been implemented in Tacoma for several years, with immigration judges at the Northwest ICE Processing Center beginning to deny bonds as early as 2010. Initially, this change attracted little attention outside the legal community. However, when the Trump administration adopted this legal theory last year, it reflected the same rationale as that of the judges.
Tacoma Judge States Congressional Authorization for Bail is Lacking
Neil Floyd, the only judge from Tacoma to speak with The Associated Press, explained that clerks had spent about six months reviewing the issue. The judges concluded that Congress never authorized the granting of bail in these cases.
“We felt it was too significant a decision for anyone to make unilaterally, so we decided to approach it collectively,” said Floyd, who served as Seattle’s top federal prosecutor during President Trump’s second term.
The judges based their decision on a 1996 law mandating that “applicants for admission” to the U.S. be detained. Historically, this has been interpreted to apply only to individuals who have recently crossed the border illegally, while those who have lived in the country for years were covered under a separate law allowing for bail hearings.
The Tacoma judges may initially seem like unlikely catalysts for such a dramatic shift. All four—former Tacoma Chief Judge Teresa Scala, John Odell, Tammy Fitting, and Floyd—began their careers as attorneys for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and generally granted asylum at rates slightly above the national average.
Floyd, who left Tacoma to advise the FBI on immigration law before assuming his current role, argued that the judges’ interpretation represents a fair application of the law. He noted, “This is the correct interpretation, as the law is clear: if you enter the U.S. correctly by seeking asylum at a port of entry, you will be detained until a decision is made regarding your admission.”
Immigration attorneys in Tacoma expressed shock at the judges’ ruling, finding no precedent for such a drastic interpretation elsewhere in the nation. Matt Adams, an attorney with the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, which has initiated a lawsuit contesting this practice, described it as an obvious attempt by prosecutors to keep individuals incarcerated. This case has not yet been scheduled for trial.
Trump Administration Aligned with Judge’s Legal Interpretation
In July, ICE announced significant changes that mirrored Judge Floyd’s interpretations, stating that immigrants who have resided in the U.S. for many years can be categorized as “admission applicants” and are thus subject to mandatory detention if they failed to enter legally. The Justice Department’s Immigration Appeals Board subsequently endorsed this argument in September, dismissing bond hearings altogether.
As a result, the number of individuals in ICE custody nearly doubled last year, hitting approximately 75,000 in January. ICE has announced plans to allocate $38.3 billion to increase detention capacity to 92,300 beds by the end of November, primarily by opening large facilities capable of housing up to 10,000 people. The judges also noted that extensive ICE raids have heightened tensions within immigrant communities.
Today, approximately 2 million immigrants are at risk of mandatory detention if arrested, and since Trump’s return to office 16 months ago, immigration detainees have filed over 40,000 lawsuits, according to an Associated Press tally.
Immigrants Face Uncertain Futures Amid Policy Changes
Despite the administration’s stance, numerous immigrants have successfully contested their detention in court. Several federal judges have ordered immediate releases, while others have redirected cases back to immigration court for bail hearings.
Victor Cruz, a handyman from Portland, Oregon, spent 24 days at the Tacoma Detention Center following an arrest by ICE agents without a warrant. After receiving a bail hearing from an immigration judge, he was released in October and ultimately won his immigration case in February.
Cruz, 56, who has close family ties in the U.S., keeps a folder of his immigration documents in his car, remaining vigilant against the potential of future detentions. He recounted meeting detainees who had been incarcerated for six to nine months.
On a recent Friday in Tacoma, Judge Fitting, one of the original quartet of judges, conducted a bail hearing at the request of a federal judge. In this instance, she denied bail to an Oregon dishwasher convicted of drunk driving in 2002 but approved a $14,000 bail for another immigrant with a clean criminal record, stating the path to legal status remains challenging.
