BOSTON / HARRISONBURG, Va. — October 17, 2025 — A 13-year-old Brazilian boy arrested by ICE in Everett, Massachusetts, remains in federal custody in Virginia, where a judge has ordered that he be brought before an immigration judge for a bond hearing no later than October 22.
The case, De Almeida Silva Berto v. Hyde et al, began in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts on October 10, 2025, when attorney Gabriela J. Cerretani filed an Emergency Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus on behalf of the child, Arthur Yuri De Almeida Silva Berto.
According to the filing, Berto “is a thirteen year old citizen of Brazil who entered the United States without inspection on or about September 24, 2021” and was later “issued a Notice to Appear, I-200 Warrant, and released on an I-286 Order of Release on Recognizance”.
The petition alleges that on or about October 9, 2025, ICE arrested him in Everett, Massachusetts, and that the agency “now asserts authority to detain Petitioner under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b), on the theory that his initial entry without inspection renders him an ‘applicant for admission’ subject to mandatory detention.” The filing contends that § 1225(b) applies only to people encountered “at or near the border” and that using it here “exceeds DHS’s statutory authority and violates the Fifth Amendment’s guarantee of due process”.
Berto’s counsel argues that ICE’s decision to re-detain him “nearly four years after entry bears no connection to the narrow purposes of § 1225(b)’s expedited-removal framework” and seeks an order “directing Respondents to provide him with a prompt, individualized custody hearing before a neutral decisionmaker pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a)”.
The petition further asserts that Berto “has continuously resided with his family in Massachusetts, has complied with all court requirements, and has a full removal proceeding pending before the Immigration Court,” with a final individual merits hearing “scheduled for May 1, 2026”.
Judge Stearns’ Initial Order in Massachusetts
On the day the case was filed, Judge Richard G. Stearns ordered the government to justify the boy’s detention, writing:
“Petitioner is a thirteen-year-old boy detained at ICE’s Burlington temporary holding facility, presumably in the company of unrelated adult detainees. Unless respondents show cause by close of business on Tuesday, October 14, 2025, for grounds justifying the detention of a juvenile in these circumstances, the court [will] order respondents to bring petitioner before an Immigration Judge for a bond hearing no later than Friday, October 17, 2025.”
Three days later, Judge Stearns issued another electronic order noting that “government counsel attests that the petitioner was in transit to Virginia outside the borders of Massachusetts one hour before the petition was filed and some two hours before the court issued its initial order.” He ruled that the Massachusetts court “lacks jurisdiction over the merits of the petition” but “will order the Clerk of this court to transfer the petition expeditiously to the Clerk of the Western District of Virginia.”
Judge Stearns added that “the government recognizes in its response its obligation to facilitate a prompt bond hearing for petitioner before the Immigration Court (as Flores requires).”
Transfer to Virginia and Current Custody
The case was docketed in the Western District of Virginia as Case No. 5:25-cv-00112-JHY-JCH, assigned to District Judge Jasmine H. Yoon and Magistrate Judge Joel C. Hoppe. On October 17, 2025, Judge Yoon issued an oral order stating:
“Petitioner is a thirteen-year-old boy who was detained by ICE in Massachusetts on October 9, 2025. He is currently in custody at the Northwestern Regional Juvenile Detention Center in Winchester, Virginia. Prior to the transfer of the case to this court, Respondents agreed that Petitioner is entitled to a bond hearing before an Immigration Judge. … The court ORDERS Respondents to bring Petitioner before the Immigration Court for a bond hearing no later than Wednesday, October 22, 2025.”
As of this week, the record shows no additional filings beyond that order.
Legal Arguments Still Pending
In the original Massachusetts petition, the defense raised three claims for relief:
- Violation of the Fifth Amendment Right to Due Process, asserting that detention without an individualized hearing violates constitutional protections and First Circuit precedent including Hernandez-Lara v. Lyons and Brito v. Garland.
- Detention Not Authorized by Statute, arguing that the government’s reliance on § 1225(b) is unlawful because that provision applies only to border encounters, not to individuals “already in removal proceedings under INA § 240”.
- Violation of the Administrative Procedure Act, alleging that ICE’s decision to detain him again under § 1225(b) is “arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, and otherwise not in accordance with law”.
The petition asks the court to declare the detention unlawful, order immediate release or a “prompt, constitutionally adequate bond hearing,” and enjoin any transfer outside Massachusetts.
Next Step
The Western District of Virginia has now taken jurisdiction. Unless further postponed, the boy’s bond hearing must occur on or before October 22, 2025, under Judge Yoon’s order. The Department of Homeland Security, represented by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Virginia, is expected to file subsequent status updates following that proceeding.