Appeals court rejects Trump's no-bond immigration detentions, setting stage for Supreme Court review

A federal appeals court ruled that the Trump administration cannot jail immigrants without the chance to seek bond, citing "serious constitutional questions."

A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday the Trump administration cannot jail immigrants without the chance to seek bond, citing "serious constitutional questions" related to what it said would otherwise be the broadest mass-detention-without-bond mandate in the nation's history for millions of noncitizens.

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The unanimous ruling from a panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York City sets the stage for a possible U.S. Supreme Court appeal. That's because panels on the 8th and 5th circuit courts have already upheld the policy put in place by President Donald Trump's administration last July.

"Today, although we part ways with two other circuits that have addressed this question, we join the overwhelming majority of federal judges across the Nation to consider it and conclude that the government's novel interpretation of the immigration statute defies their plain text," Judge Joseph F. Bianco wrote for the panel, which included Judges Alison J. Nathan and Jose A. Cabranes.