The San Francisco Bay Area office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-SFBA), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today welcomed the release of a CAIR-SFBA client from ICE detention after a federal court granted CAIR SFBA’s petition for a writ of habeas corpus and motion for a temporary restraining order. The court’s decision found the client’s detention unlawful, preventing the government from continuing to hold him or re-detain him without a showing of good cause.
The client is an asylum seeker with a pending immigration court date who was abruptly taken into custody during an ICE check-in on Dec. 3, 2025.
In the habeas petition, CAIR-SFBA argued that the government violated the Fourth and Fifth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution and ignored established legal precedent by misclassifying the client as an “arriving alien” subject to mandatory detention. This classification was used to deny him a bond hearing and strip him of his due process rights in an arbitrary and capricious manner.
In a statement, CAIR-SFBA Immigrants’ Rights Managing Attorney David Tarr said:
“The court’s decision to grant habeas corpus is a victory for the rule of law and a rejection of the government’s attempt to sidestep the Constitution. Detaining someone at a routine ICE check-in is deeply unjust and turns compliance into a trap. This administration’s collective guilt approach is an opportunistic and inhumane policy. We’re relieved our client is home, but this case serves as a stern reminder: the government cannot use shifting legal theories or exploit fear to deprive people of their Constitutionally protected liberties without a lawful justification.”
CAIR-SFBA noted that courts across the country have rejected the government’s attempt to treat individuals as “arriving aliens” subject to mandatory detention years after entering the U.S. and while they are proactively pursuing immigration benefits guaranteed to them by law.
CAIR-SFBA encourages community members with questions about detention, check-ins, or immigration court proceedings to contact CAIR-SFBA’s legal team for guidance at bit.ly/sfba-ice-help.
CAIR-SFBA is an office of CAIR, America’s largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance understanding of Islam, protect civil rights, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
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CONTACT: CAIR-SFBA Communications Manager Lorrie Adam, 408.498.5779, ladam@cair.com