Keker, Van Nest & Peters has joined civil rights groups in challenging ICE's practice of re-arresting and re-detaining immigrants already cleared by the government. ABC10 and other news outlets covered a hearing in the case in federal court in San Jose on Tuesday, during which attorneys from the ACLU Foundation of Northern California and Keker argued to stay the ICE practice.
The legal fight began with the case of Garro Pinchi, who was released on her own recognizance in 2023 but was detained again in July despite meeting every condition of her release. She filed a habeas corpus petition demanding justification for the detention and was later released.
“We are challenging an abrupt reversal of 40 years of established policy by the government,” said Keker partner Erin Meyer in an interview with ABC10. “If you’ve been released, you don’t commit any crimes, you show up to all your immigration appointments, you should be able to have some comfort that ICE is not going to re-arrest you.”
Keker joined the ACLU Foundation, ACLU Foundation of Northern California, and Centro Legal de la Raza in filing a federal class-action lawsuit in October, arguing the Trump administration's unexplained reversal of longstanding policy violates the Administrative Procedures Act. The complaint was filed on behalf of asylum seekers who live in the Bay Area.
“Hundreds of people who are just showing up to their immigration court hearings or their ICE check-ins have been arrested and detained since May of 2025,” Meyer said. She added that it is “hard to take the administration’s argument seriously” that no new federal policy exists.
Meyer said the legal team expects a ruling before the holidays on whether the court will temporarily block the alleged policy while the case proceeds.
Keker attorneys on the case include Meyer, Julia Allen, Claire Bonelli, Jacquie Andreano, Kayla Crowell, and Ellen Watlington.
Read the ABC10 article here. The hearing was also covered by KQED, Courthouse News Service, and ABC7 News.