Also available in Português / Español A federal judge has ordered the immediate release of Eleandro Almeida De Souza after finding that immigration authorities failed to prove he posed a flight risk — and after delivering a sharp rebuke of ICE’s credibility. U.S. District Judge Brian E. Murphy granted De Souza’s motion to enforce in a Friday opinion from the District of Massachusetts. The court had already directed his release in a docket order so he would not remain locked up while the written decision was finished. De Souza entered the United States in September 2019 and was released on an order of recognizance. ICE took him into custody around Aug. 14, 2026. After he filed a habeas petition, the court ordered that he be released or given an individualized bond hearing. That hearing was held Aug. 24. An immigration judge then found De Souza to be a flight risk and denied bond. The government’s central evidence was a Form I-213, a DHS arrest record. It claimed De Souza stopped his vehicle, then ran from ICE officers, jumped fences, and was later detained on Newton Street. De Souza’s lawyer offered a sharply different account: the stop was aggressive, he was boxed in by vehicles, he did not see emergency lights or hear sirens, and he ran out of fear. Counsel said he later walked back toward his car and was taken into custody without a struggle. The I-213 stated that officers were wearing body cameras. No video was submitted. Murphy ruled that the government must prove flight risk by a preponderance of the evidence and that a rebutted, uncorroborated Form I-213 is not enough as a matter of law. He compared I-213s to police reports, which courts have said cannot carry substantial weight without corroboration. The judge also wrote that even if De Souza initially fled, that fact alone would not establish a flight risk for bond purposes. The opinion went further. Murphy said the court no longer applies a presumption of regularity to ICE after what he described as repeated misrepresentations in other cases. The motion to enforce was granted, and De Souza was ordered immediately released. Back to top button