As Trendwire went to press, we were alerted that DHS had directed attorneys to immediately halt all new pretermission motions under Asylum Cooperative Agreements. The order, which surfaced in a leaked internal email, leaves pending motions in place and offers no explanation. What happens next is uncertain.
However, what the data shows is clear: ACA removals have surged to record highs, bond hearings have collapsed to their lowest level ever recorded, and habeas petitions are flooding federal courts with no consistent answer.
1. DHS Immediately Halts Pretermissions
This month's biggest "policy development" arrived without explanation and without official announcement. DHS directed attorneys to immediately stop filing pretermission motions under Asylum Cooperative Agreements. Pending motions remain in place. No rationale was given. Meanwhile, the removal machinery it helped build continues to accelerate, with Honduras, Ecuador, and Uganda absorbing the overwhelming share.
2. Bond Hearings and Approvals Plummet
Bond hearings are down 80% from their peak less than a year ago. Approvals have fallen even further, nearly 87%, with just 326 people released on bond in February. New policies and ongoing court battles have systematically dismantled the bond process, leaving tens of thousands of detained individuals with no practical path to release while their cases proceed.
3. Habeas is Bound for the Supreme Court
Two forces converged to collapse bond hearings where most immigrants are detained: a January directive telling judges to deny bond hearings regardless of court orders, and a February appeals ruling that legally foreclosed them across Texas and Louisiana. The Fifth Circuit says no bond hearings. Most other circuits say yes. Lawyers are now racing to file petitions before their clients are transferred into Texas jurisdiction. That contradiction cannot hold.
This ends at the Supreme Court. Read why.