On Jan. 11, Danny Briceno-Solano was picked up by ICE agents on I-77 because his vehicle had unclear, paper license plates.
On Wednesday, U.S. District Thomas Johnston ordered Briceno-Solano released from South Central Regional Jail, where he has been held for weeks.
It is the third time a federal judge has ordered the release of an immigrant detained in a West Virginia jail over the last week.
In a strongly-worded opinion, the judge wrote that the government had violated the Constitution by detaining Briceno-Solano “without explanation, without a hearing, without notice, or without any means of challenging that detention.”
Johnston explained that due process — the right to be given an explanation and a fair hearing before being deprived of life, liberty or property— applies to all on American soil, even those who have crossed the border illegally.
“A threat to anyone’s constitutional rights is a threat to us all,” wrote Johnston, who was appointed by President George W. Bush.
“Today, immigrants are being detained without due process. Tomorrow, under the Government’s interpretation of the law, American citizens could be subject to the same treatment. This Court will not allow such an unraveling of the Constitution.”
Last week, ICE reported arresting 650 immigrants in a two-week January operation. Fifteen of the people arrested have already asked judges to order their release, arguing they are unconstitutionally detained. More such petitions are expected.
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Briceno-Solano crossed into the United States illegally in June of 2022. He was stopped at the border.
After being lawfully released in the United States, he applied for and was given permission to stay, based on unsafe conditions in Venezuela. He had a work permit, and a North Carolina driver’s license.
Johnston noted Briceno-Solano is employed as a contractor and pays his taxes.
He is a husband and father and resides in the United States with his family.
Briceno-Solano’s lawyers, Jonathan Sidney of the Climate Defense Project and Lesley Nash of Mountain State Justice, argued that he had complied with removal hearings and wasn’t a criminal.
His removal hearings were dismissed just nine days before he was detained.
A spokesperson for U.S. Attorney Moore Capito did not immediately provide any response to the judge’s ruling.
Johnston referenced Luke 6:31, the “Golden Rule,” in his opinion.
“Why should we care about other people not getting due process? We are all ultimately the government—its authority is derived from ‘we the people,’ and it is accountable to us for its conduct. Thus, when it deprives a person of due process, we are, in a very real sense, all responsible. What, then, has become of ‘[d]o to others as you would have them do to you’?”
Last week, U.S. District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin ordered two ICE detainees released for the same reasons cited by Johnston.
The court challenges in West Virginia reflect the growing national concerns that Trump’s efforts to expand immigration enforcement plainly contradict basic constitutional principles that limit the government’s ability to jail human beings without good reason.
Johnston noted that these issues have been “thoroughly addressed” by courts throughout the country, and the Trump administration’s arguments have been “consistently rejected as contrary to established law.”
“Curiously, the government evidently found it prudent to assert those same arguments before this court,” Johnston wrote in his opinion. “Thus, to ensure the government understands why these arguments fail, the court will provide exhaustive explanations … which will hopefully preserve judicial resources and shorten the time individuals spend in unlawful custody in future cases.”