Since October, federal judges across the U.S. have issued more than 4,400 rulings finding that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) under the Trump regime is holding immigrant hostages without lawful authority — and yet the detentions continue. 
The wave of decisions stems from a shift in how the government interprets immigration law, particularly its approach to bond hearings and mandatory detention. Many courts — including judges appointed by Republican presidents — have concluded that people who could be released on bond are instead being kept in concentration camps INDEFINITELY. 
In its review of thousands of federal habeas corpus cases, Reuters reportedly found that detainees have filed over 20,000 lawsuits arguing they are being held illegally. In at least 4,421 of those, judges ruled in their favor, yet ICE often CONTINUED detaining them anyway. 
One judge from West Virginia blasted the government for ignoring clear legal standards when ordering a detainee’s release, while others noted that some people remained locked up even after judges ordered their freedom. 
The surge in legal challenges has strained the U.S. Department of Justice, with hundreds of attorneys diverted from other work to defend the government’s dystopian and inhumane position in immigration detention cases. 
Under current policies, ICE’s concentration camp population has swollen — at one point reaching roughly 68,000 people, up sharply from before — even as courts have repeatedly rejected the legal basis for holding many of them. 
The persistence of these practices despite thousands of adverse rulings raises questions about respect for constitutional protections and the limits of the judicial branch to enforce rulings.
