Louisiana and Texas are the most dangerous states for an immigrant detained in the United States. This was warned by Cuban-American attorney Wilfredo Allen during the weekly immigration analysis program hosted by Tania Costa, pointing out that both states belong to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, the most conservative and restrictive court regarding immigration matters in the country.
The immediate context of the warning is a ruling issued on October 23 by the same court. In the case Sosnava Rodríguez v. Vergara, decided by a vote of 10 to 7, the Fifth Circuit overturned orders from lower courts that had granted habeas corpus and individual bond hearings to detained migrants, establishing that certain immigrants who entered without formal inspection do not have an automatic constitutional right to a bond hearing during their deportation proceedings.
"The Fifth Circuit is the most conservative circuit and has issued the most anti-immigrant federal orders," Allen stated, adding, "It is very difficult for a person detained in the Fifth Circuit — which includes Louisiana and Texas for most immigration prisons — to gain freedom unless they secure asylum."
The lawyer explained that the recent ruling "essentially denies the ability to file habeas corpus for individuals who are detained" in that jurisdiction, which eliminates one of the most important legal tools for seeking release during a migration process.
The contrast with other jurisdictions is notable. That same week, Allen obtained in Iowa —a district that is also conservative— a court residency for a Cuban with no criminal record who was detained. “He was granted his residency and is on his way home this week,” he noted.
The warning takes on special relevance in light of the documented transfers of detainees from the Krome center in Miami-Dade to facilities in Louisiana and Texas. Allen clarified that this practice is not new. "Since detentions have existed, they have moved people from immigration to different places." To illustrate this, he recounted a personal case from more than two decades ago. He explained that a client of his detained at Krome was threatened with death, and instead of relocating the aggressor, the authorities transferred the client himself to Buffalo, New York.
Regarding the reasons behind the current transfers, Allen pointed to a combination of factors: increased private prison capacity in those states — Texas housed 16,237 detainees from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency in 27 facilities and Louisiana 7,579 in 11 centers, according to data from August 2026 —, more restrictive immigration laws in that jurisdiction, and logistics that make it difficult to litigate from those courts. The lawyer mentioned having lunch a few days earlier with a high-ranking retired official from the Department of Homeland Security who was one of the key figures responsible for detentions, who confirmed that the practice of moving detainees between states is historical.
The episode framing the program is the deportation of 69 Cubans to the Central African Republic —64 men and five women— on a flight that departed from Alexandria, Louisiana, on October 21. The deportees traveled handcuffed or chained for approximately 50 hours, with stops in Senegal, Equatorial Guinea, and Burundi, unaware of their destination until they were in the air. Upon arriving in Bangui, they lacked immigration documents and authorization to work; UN personnel received them and temporarily housed them in a country classified by the State Department as level 4 ("do not travel") due to armed conflict.
Regarding the possibilities of return for that group, Allen was straightforward: "Returning to the United States once you have a final deportation order, even if it's not criminal, is very difficult."
Si tienes familiares o conocidos detenidos en EE.UU., mantenerte informado sobre sus derechos puede marcar la diferencia. Sigue toda la actualidad migratoria en nuestra sección de
Filed under: