Holland & Hart represented a long-term U.S. resident, business owner, and father of four U.S. citizen children in a federal habeas corpus action challenging his prolonged immigration detention as unconstitutional.
Our client came to the United States at age 17 and had lived in the country for 27 years. He owns a business, owns a home, is married to a U.S. citizen, and has four U.S. citizen children. He had been waiting for the final step of his green card application to be scheduled. In January 2026, he was detained by ICE after an intoxicated driver hit his car and he was held without bond.
First, we filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado, arguing that detaining our client without a bond hearing was unconstitutional. The court granted the petition and ordered a bond hearing, requiring the government to bear the burden of proving—by clear and convincing evidence—that continued detention was justified.
At the bond hearing, the immigration judge denied bond without applying that standard. The ruling made no mention of the clear and convincing evidence standard, identified no evidence satisfying the government's burden, and contained no individualized analysis of our client's circumstances. As a result, our client continued to be detained at the Aurora ICE Processing Center—missing his wedding anniversary, his son's prom and starring role in a school musical, his step-son’s swearing-in ceremony to the Wyoming Air Guard, and countless everyday moments with his children.
Our team then filed a Motion to Enforce Judgment, arguing that the immigration judge had failed to comply with the court's order. On May 15, 2026, Judge Nina Y. Wang granted the motion and ordered our client's immediate release, writing: "[Petitioner] has now been unconstitutionally detained for nearly four months. And even after this Court ruled that Petitioner's constitutional rights had been violated, his due process rights were violated again at the deficient bond hearing. The Court sees no reason to order another bond hearing—and risk a third constitutional violation—and prolong the detention that this Court has already determined is unlawful."
Our client was incredibly grateful to be reunited with his family that evening.
The Holland & Hart team was led by Immigration partner Samantha Wolfe, with assistance from Josh Hurwit, Chris Thomas, Julia Oksasoglu, Nathan Lilly, Steve Masciocchi, Anne Trinh, and Lela Velasquez.
Holland & Hart's Immigration attorneys provide skilled representation to employers and individuals navigating today's complex and rapidly evolving immigration landscape—delivering sophisticated counsel to manage compliance demands, defend against enforcement actions, and support global mobility and workforce talent priorities.