Oluwadamilola B. v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security: Acting Director St…

Background

Petitioner Oluwadamilola B., proceeding without a lawyer (pro se), filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus — a legal request asking a court to order that a person being held in custody be released because the detention is unlawful. He was being held at Sherburne County Jail, apparently in immigration custody under the authority of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The named respondents include the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, ICE, the Acting Director and Director of the ICE St. Paul Field Office, and the Administrator of Sherburne County Jail.

Magistrate Judge's Report and Recommendation

United States Magistrate Judge John F. Docherty issued a Report and Recommendation (R&R) on August 11, 2026, recommending that Petitioner be released on the grounds that he had been unlawfully arrested by immigration authorities. The government (representing the federal respondents) filed a limited objection to the R&R's Fourth Amendment analysis, but acknowledged it was simply repeating the same argument it had made in its original papers.

Standard of Review

Because the government's objection merely restated arguments already presented to the magistrate judge, the court applied a "clear error" standard of review — a deferential standard under which the magistrate judge's conclusions are upheld unless they are plainly wrong. Portions of the R&R that were not objected to were also reviewed for clear error, as required by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 72(b).

Key Legal Issue: Timing of Arrest Relative to Notice to Appear

The dispositive (outcome-determining) legal question was whether the Form I-200 administrative arrest warrant authorized the arrest at the time it was executed. Under 8 C.F.R. § 236.1(b), a valid Form I-200 authorizes the arrest of a noncitizen only "[a]t the time of issuance of the notice to appear, or at any time thereafter and up to the time the removal proceedings are completed." A Notice to Appear is the document that formally initiates removal (deportation) proceedings against a noncitizen.

The record showed that immigration officials arrested Petitioner under the Form I-200 warrant before the Notice to Appear had been issued. Because the arrest occurred prior to the issuance of the Notice to Appear, the warrant did not legally authorize the arrest at that moment, making the arrest unlawful. The court rejected the government's arguments about checkboxes on the I-200 form, finding those arguments irrelevant to the timing question that determined legality.

Disposition

Judge Blackwell accepted the R&R in part and modified it with the Fourth Amendment reasoning set out in the order. He granted the habeas petition in part, ordering the following:

- Respondents must immediately release Petitioner from custody. - Respondents must file a notice confirming his release within 48 hours of the order. - Respondents may not continue detaining Petitioner based on the existing December 14, 2025 Form I-200 warrant or the arrest made pursuant to it. - The order does not prevent the government from arresting or detaining Petitioner in the future, provided any such action is taken pursuant to lawful authority and in compliance with applicable legal requirements.

The court directed that judgment be entered accordingly.