Habeas corpus
One measure of the astounding success of the current ICE operation in Minnesota can be found in the explosion of Habeas Corpus filings in Federal District Court in Minnesota.
It seems that as soon as an illegal alien is taken into custody, a lawyer rushes to court asking for release. Immigration advocates have learned that they will get a far more sympathetic hearing in the mostly liberal district court than they will at the now-besieged Immigration Court located at Ft. Snelling.
As of this afternoon (January 15), 189 such petitions have been filed in Federal District Court since the beginning of the year. That number represents 54 percent of all the 347 civil cases filed with the court in 2026. Usually, the federal civil case docket is filled with garden-variety product liability and contract dispute lawsuits.
Expressed a different way, in 2025, it took until January 29 before we reached civil case No. 343, overall.
I first started tracking these habeas cases back in mid-April 2025. In the final 7-and-a-half months of 2025, we saw 123 habeas cases filed in Minnesota. In 2026, we hit the No. 123 mark on Tuesday, January 13, just seven business days into the new year.
It’s classic Saul Alinsky Rules for Radicals No. 4. By definition, illegal aliens don’t follow the rules, but they indignantly insist that the government live up to the letter of the law.
Even before the late unpleasantness, the local branch of the U.S. Department of Justice was understaffed. Neither the court nor the DOJ has the capacity to deal with the flood of litigation supporting illegal aliens.
Typical of these habeas cases is one captioned Sanchez v. Bondi et. al. (26-cv-216). None of the plaintiff’s or government filings are available to the public. The case was filed on Tuesday, January 13. Immediately, the same day, the judge demanded that the Dept. of Justice reply by noon, Thursday, January 15. When the DOJ failed to produce the reply by Wednesday (a day prior to the original deadline) the judge demanded that they appear before the court at 9 am Thursday (three hours before the deadline) to explain why they hadn’t met the new accelerated, unpublished deadline. It’s Star Chamber stuff.
In the immortal words of Warren Zevon, “send lawyers, guns, and money.” Minnesota needs a lot more of the former in the U.S. Attorney’s office.
In contrast, I’ve been tracking a mere 108 Minnesota Men (vs. 313 habeas cases) being prosecuted in federal district court for illegal immigration and other felonies since Donald Trump returned to the White House a year ago.
Speaking of Minnesota Men, Xavier Antonio Contreras-Lara of Honduras appeared in federal court in downtown Minneapolis back on Monday.
Contreras pled guilty to one count of illegal reentry of a previously deported alien. He had been deported on two prior occasions.
A suspect matching his name was arrested back in late August and again in October on domestic assault charges in McLeod County, according to jail records. After this second arrest, he was indicted in federal court and placed in the Fast Track program.
He is now a convicted felon.
In a court filing made by his federal defense attorney, Contreras is said to have been a banker in his native land, chased out of the country by local gangs. Upon his return to Honduras, he will seek employment as a welder.
Another Honduran, Jose Alexander Fuentes-Galdames appeared in federal court yesterday (January 14) to enter a guilty plea to illegal entry of a previously deported alien.
Fuentes had been picked up in Kandiyohi County back in July on a drunk driving charge.
Julian Onesimo Narvaez-Ramirez, of Mexico, was back in federal court today (January 15).
Narvaez was a previous Minnesota Man of the Month honoree (July) on account of his status as convicted sex felon. The victim was his elementary-school-age daughter.
He received a 21-month prison sentence for his latest felony convictions of illegal re-entry. and failure to register as a sex offender.
Adios mis amigos!