Supreme Court to Review Immigration Detention Policy

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to review whether a 1996 immigration law allows the Trump administration to detain some people who entered the country without authorization without giving them a chance to seek release on bond while their deportation cases proceed. The justices’ decision will resolve conflicting federal appeals court rulings, but its outcome and practical effects remain unknown. The case concerns Ricardo Aparecido Barbosa da Cunha, a Brazilian citizen arrested in Massachusetts in September 2025. Lower courts found that the administration’s interpretation of the law did not make automatic detention applicable to him, and he was released on bond in October 2025. The administration asked the Supreme Court to reverse those rulings. The administration argues that the 1996 law authorizes its policy. Under guidance issued in 2025, people covered by the policy can be held during removal proceedings without an individualized bond hearing. Such proceedings can last months or longer. The dispute centers on whether the statute’s mandatory-detention provision applies to people who entered without authorization but have lived in the United States for years.