Policy Alert: ICE’s New Detention Plan Could Impact Millions

This interpretation is a drastic departure from long-standing legal precedent and removes the authority of immigration judges to grant bond hearings. As a result, individuals would no longer have the right to an individualized custody review, even if they pose no flight risk or danger to the community.

If implemented, this policy could lead to the mass detention of millions of people. Congress recently allocated $45 billion for detention expansion under the One Big Beautiful Bill, doubling ICE’s detention capacity to 100,000 beds. The directive is already being applied in immigration courts nationwide, although a federal court in Washington State ruled earlier this year that this interpretation is unlawful.