Courts Approved Mass Detention Without Bond — In One Hand-Picked Circuit
On February 6, 2026, two judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit — Edith Jones (Reagan appointee) and Kyle Duncan (Trump appointee) — ruled that the Trump administration can indefinitely detain noncitizens without bond hearings, even those who have lived in the United States for years or decades and have no criminal record.
This reversed the rulings of two lower courts that had granted bond hearings, and contradicted the findings of more than 300 federal judges — including Trump appointees — who ruled the policy likely violates due process in 350+ cases.
Judge Dana Douglas, in a sharp dissent, warned that the ruling grants the government authority to detain up to 2 million noncitizens indefinitely — "without historical precedent, and in the teeth of one of the core distinctions of immigration law."
Why the Fifth Circuit?
The Fifth Circuit is widely regarded as the most conservative appellate court in the nation and is frequently the government's preferred forum for testing aggressive legal theories that face rejection in every other circuit. It is the only appellate court to endorse this interpretation.
What Changed
For decades, noncitizens arrested in the interior of the U.S. — as opposed to at the border — were eligible for bond hearings. In July 2025, ICE issued a memo reclassifying all people who entered without inspection as "applicants for admission" subject to mandatory detention. This reversed 30 years of executive branch practice.
Detention Has Exploded Nationwide
The scale of what has been built in one year is staggering — and it is funded by $45 billion in supplemental appropriations from the "One Big Beautiful Bill" passed in July 2025.
Daily ICE detention: ~40,000 → 70,000+
A 75% increase in one year, making it the highest level in U.S. history. The administration's original target was 108,000 beds by January 2026. Nearly 74% of those detained have no criminal convictions.
Facilities nearly doubled: ~120 → 225
According to ICE data released February 2, 2026, people are held at 225 facilities nationwide — including local jails, federal prisons, military bases, and privately-run facilities. This is a 91% increase in facilities in one year.
Children are being detained
Reporting by The Marshall Project and other outlets has documented an increase in the detention of children. A federal judge ordered a 5-year-old released, but data shows ICE is detaining more kids overall.
2025 was the deadliest year on record
32 people died in ICE custody in 2025 — the highest since at least 2004. At least 6 more died in the first three weeks of 2026 alone, putting the year on pace for 120+ deaths. Seven died in December 2025 alone — the deadliest single month under the current administration.
Medical Care Was Cut Off — Documented and Admitted
ICE stopped paying third-party medical providers on October 3, 2025, and told them to hold all claims until at least April 30, 2026. The result: providers began denying care, and people in federal custody were left without access to life-sustaining treatment.
How it happened
For over 20 years, the Department of Veterans Affairs processed medical reimbursement claims for ICE detainees — using ICE funds, not veteran funds. On September 30, 2025, after pressure from a right-wing nonprofit, the VA abruptly terminated the agreement. ICE had no replacement system ready.
What was lost
Internal government documents showed ICE had "no mechanism to provide prescribed medication" and no way to "pay for medically necessary off-site care." Detainees could no longer receive dialysis, prenatal care, oncology treatment, or chemotherapy.
The gap: nearly $300 million
In 2024, the VA processed $246 million in medical claims. In 2025 — despite an 82% population increase — only $157 million was processed. The nearly $300 million gap represents unpaid bills and people who simply never received treatment.
85 credible reports of medical neglect
Senator Jon Ossoff's investigation documented 85 credible reports of medical neglect — including untreated heart attacks and denied medications — and these incidents occurred before the payment system collapsed. Conditions have likely worsened since.
Medical professionals are quitting
U.S. Public Health Service officers — nurses, doctors, pharmacists — deployed to ICE facilities are resigning rather than participate. One nurse practitioner said: "We have been tasked with protecting and promoting health, and instead, we are being asked to facilitate inhumane operations."
Deaths and Violations at Camp East Montana
Camp East Montana — a 5,000-person tent facility on Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas — is currently the largest ICE detention site in the nation. It has become a flashpoint for documented abuse, deaths, and federal standard violations.
Three deaths in two months
One death — Geraldo Lunas Campos, age 55, legally admitted to the U.S. in 1996 — was classified by the medical examiner as a homicide. An eyewitness detainee reported seeing guards choking Lunas Campos, who could be heard saying "No puedo respirar" — "I can't breathe." Other deaths remain under investigation.
Dozens of federal standard violations
Internal government watchdogs found dozens of violations of federal detention standards in the facility's first month of operation. The facility was thrown together so quickly that it couldn't be made safe for the people held in it.
Congressional oversight blocked
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem issued a memo banning unannounced congressional visits to facilities funded by the "Big Beautiful Bill." Members of Congress must now give a week's notice — effectively ending independent oversight of conditions.
"Mega Warehouses" Are Being Built Quietly, Nationwide
The federal government is purchasing massive industrial warehouses and converting them into detention facilities — some designed to hold 8,000 people at once. A DHS spreadsheet verified by NBC News shows 20+ potential locations.
Confirmed purchases
El Paso, TX: Three warehouses for $123 million — expected to hold 8,500 people. Pennsylvania: $84 million. Arizona: $70 million for a building the size of seven football fields. Maryland: $102 million. More scouted in New Jersey, Colorado, Mississippi, and elsewhere.
Built without local notice or control
Communities across the country are pushing back — but generally cannot block the federal government from purchasing private property for detention. Hundreds of residents have attended public hearings. Even Republican lawmakers have objected to proposed sites in their districts.
"Amazon Prime, but with human beings"
Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons publicly described his vision for deportation logistics at the 2025 Border Security Expo: "We need to get better at treating this like a business… like [Amazon] Prime, but with human beings." Multiple outlets confirmed the quote.