Published July 22, 2026 at 11:47 AM ET · Updated July 22, 2026 at 6:07 PM ET
Full Fifth Circuit rules illegal immigrants have no constitutional right to freedom during removal proceedings
3 independent outlets are covering this story. Verification: Confirmed — reported independently by wire/mainstream and conservative outlets. Patriot Watch links to original reporting; we don't republish it.
The full Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that illegal immigrants do not have a constitutional right to remain free during removal proceedings. The decision stays lower court rulings and represents a win for the Trump administration's immigration enforcement.
Patriot Watch first flagged this story 7 hr ago, when Daily Caller reported it. Coverage has since grown to 3 independent outlets. The most recent report came 2 hr ago from Washington Examiner. Verification tier: Confirmed — reported independently by wire/mainstream and conservative outlets.
⚖ The Constitutional Angle
Yamataya v. Fisher held that an alien who has entered is a person under the Fifth Amendment owed due process. Zadvydas v. Kim Ho Ma limited post-removal detention to a period reasonably necessary to effect removal, barring indefinite detention. The slices set a due process floor and detention limits for aliens who have entered but establish no right to freedom pending proceedings.
Kaoru Yamataya v. Thomas M. Fisher, Immigrant and Chinese Inspector (The Japanese Immigrant Case) 189 U.S. 86 (1903)
Vote: Majority for the Court (Harlan); Brewer and Peckham dissenting. Exact 7-2 tally not… · Opinion: Harlan
Although Congress may commit exclusion and deportation to executive officers without judicial trial, an alien who has landed and become part of the U.S.
Zadvydas v. Kim Ho Ma) 533 U.S. 678 (2001)
Vote: 5-4 · Opinion: Justice Stephen G. Breyer
8 U.S.C. § 1231(a)(6), read in light of the Constitution's demands, limits an alien's post-removal-period detention to a period reasonably necessary to bring about that alien's removal from the United States; it 'does not permit indefinite detention.' The Court adopted six months as the presumptively reasonable detention period: after six months, once the alien provides good reason to believe there is no significant likelihood of removal in the reasonably foreseeable future, the government must rebut that showing or release the alien (under supervision).
Precedent facts from the PW Law Library — primary-source verified & independently audited
