Man Detained by ICE Filed SDNY Habeas Then Dropped It & Filed DNJ Judge Asks of Shopping

Man Detained by ICE Filed SDNY Habeas Then Dropped It & Filed DNJ Judge Asks of Shopping by Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book Substack SDNY COURTHOUSE, April 29 –A man from Mexico now in ICE detention in 26 Federal Plaza filed a habeas corpus petition in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, where Inner City Press found it.    The petition says he was arrested by after a traffic stop by ICE while driving his two youngest children home. After his detention, his partially paralyzed wife could not drive, so a cousin came to drive the car - and children - home.  The case was assigned to SDNY Judge John P. Cronan. The petition attached a printout, currently in "NYC HOLD ROOM." Later on April 21, the petitioner voluntarily dismissed the petition - as Inner City Press has noted in other cases. In this case, Judge Cronan is digging into it, convening the parties "in particular" petititioner's counsel, on April 29 to discuss the reasons for the dismissal - and refiling of another case, in DNJ, 2:26-cv-4241. On PACER this says, "You do not have permission to view this document." Inner City Press went on April 29. A supervisor, not the lawyer on the papers, said he had seen after filing that the client was now at Delaney Hall in New Jersey. Judge Cronan asked if, had the SDNY petition been assigned to a judge more willing to stay transfers and order release, it would have been withdrawn. The question stands - in another case covered by Inner City Press, a habeas corpus petition assigned to Judge Cronan was dropped and refiled - in SDNY. April 22 –  A man from Mexico was detained by ICE on April 21 and on April 22 at 12:14 pm a Walker Street-based lawyer filed a habeas corpus petition in his name in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, where Inner City Press found it. It was Estrada Santos v. Genalo, et al., 1:26-cv-3313.      At 12:25 pm, the case was assigned to District Judge John P. Cronan.  Notable, Judge Cronan recently denied the habeas petition of a New York City Council staff member from Venezuela, as covered in the Press.   At 12:35 pm the Walker Street-based lawyer filed a "Notice of Voluntary Dismissal," withdrawing the petition.   At 12:39 pm - four minutes later - the same lawyer filed a second habeas corpus petition for the same client. This case was Estrada Santos v. Genalo, et al., 1:26-cv-3316 (Unassigned) --  Until, after Inner City Press published the above, the case was deemed related and assigned to Judge Cronan, who has asked for a letter by May 4 why sanctions should not issue (as, he noted, is being consider in an 11th Circuit case from Alabama).   Here, Judge Cronan asked why NJ District Judge Farbiaz (whose lack of call-in line Inner City Press previously covered) was not told an identical case had already been filed. That question also stands. We'll have more on this - but not on the NJ / Farbiaz case, since it cannot be tracked online. The case is - or was? - Popoca Solis v. Francis, et al., 1:26-cv-3258 (Cronan) *** Your support means a lot. As little as $5 a month helps keep us going and grants you access to exclusive bonus material on our Patreon page. Click here to become a patron. Feedback: Editorial [at] innercitypress.com Mail: Box 130222, Chinatown Station, NY NY 10013 Other, earlier Inner City Press are listed here, and some are available in the ProQuest service, and now on Lexis-Nexis.  Copyright 2006-2026 Inner City Press, Inc. To request reprint or other permission, e-contact Editorial [at] innercitypress.com