A federal judge in Fort Myers has ordered the immediate release of Dmitrii Iastrebov, an immigration detainee held at the Baker County Detention Facility, after finding that the government failed to follow a prior court mandate. The order gave officials 48 hours to free Iastrebov and told them to coordinate his pickup with his attorney. The judge capped the ruling with a sharp line, writing “Give me a break,” a clear sign of frustration with the government’s reversal.
Federal court rejects government’s reversal and orders release
In a June 11 order, the court rejected the government’s attempt to walk back its earlier concession that Iastrebov was entitled to a bond hearing. The later effort to recast him as subject to mandatory detention was deemed legally unsupportable. The opinion labeled the government’s reversal “a masterclass in litigation cynicism” and said officials had offered “zero assurance” they would comply with the statutory process, which the judge said left immediate release as the only viable remedy. The full June 11 order is posted on the federal docket.
How the case reached this point
On May 13, Judge Kyle C. Dudek had already ordered the government to provide Iastrebov a bond hearing under 8 U.S.C. § 1226, after government lawyers conceded he was eligible. Five days later, however, an immigration judge declined to hold the hearing. According to the Tampa Free Press, government attorneys then waived an administrative appeal and later told the federal court that their earlier concession “was in error.” That sequence led to a renewed habeas petition and the subsequent order. The earlier ruling is detailed in the May 13 order.
What the order means
The fight centered on whether Iastrebov’s detention falls under a statute that allows bond or a provision that requires mandatory detention. 8 U.S.C. § 1226 authorizes individualized bond hearings, while 8 U.S.C. § 1225 can trigger mandatory detention for certain applicants. The court concluded that § 1226 governs in Iastrebov’s case and that the government’s flip-flop warranted immediate release rather than giving the agency another chance to correct course.
Local facility and oversight
Iastrebov has been held at the Baker County Detention Facility in Macclenny, a county jail that houses ICE detainees under contract and that has been the subject of publicly available oversight and compliance reviews. ICE’s facility inspection for Baker County and other reports documenting concerns at local detention sites provide context for why custody disputes at these facilities often end up in federal court, and the ICE review is available online.
Next steps
The order directed the clerk to terminate pending motions and enter judgment, which means Iastrebov is supposed to be released within 48 hours and picked up by his lawyer unless something else intervenes. Legal observers say the ruling will be closely watched for what it signals about how federal judges police agency compliance with bond rules and courtroom concessions in immigration cases. Coverage of the opinion has underscored the judge’s unusually blunt criticism of the government’s conduct. For a deeper dive into the court’s language and reasoning, see reporting by Law&Crime.
