Opinion
Case No. 4:18 CV 1141
03-04-2019
DR. ABDELHALEEM ASHQAR, Petitioner, v. CHRISTOPHER J. LAROSE, et al., Respondents.
Judge Christopher A. Boyko REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION
Petitioner Dr. Abdelhaleem Ashqar ("Petitioner"), an immigration detainee in federal custody, filed a Petition for a Writ of Habeas Corpus 28 U.S.C. § 2241 ("Petition"). (Doc. 1). Respondents Christopher LaRose (Warden, Northeast Ohio Correctional Center), Rebecca Adducci, Detroit Field Office Director, United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement ("ICE")), Michael V. Bernacke (Chief, Removal International Operations Unit, ICE), Thomas D. Homan (Acting Director, ICE), and Kirstjen M. Nielsen (Secretary, United States Department of Homeland Security ("DHS")) filed a Response and Motion to Dismiss Improper Respondents. (Doc. 9). Petitioner filed a Traverse (Doc. 10), and Respondents filed a Reply (Doc. 11). Herein, the undersigned addresses only Respondents Motion to Dismiss Improper Respondents.
Also pending before the undersigned on referral are Petitioner's renewed motion for discovery (Doc. 25) and Respondents motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction (Doc. 30). These motions will be addressed in a subsequent report and recommendation. --------
The Government moves to dismiss all named Respondents except Rebecca Adducci, the Field Office Director of the ICE Detroit Field Office. (Doc. 9, at 12). Petitioner presented no argument in opposition to this motion. See Doc. 10.
The proper party respondent in a habeas petition is "the person" with custody over Petitioner. 28 U.S.C. § 2242. There is "generally only one proper respondent, and the custodian is 'the person' with the ability to produce the prisoner's body before the habeas court." Rumsfeld v. Padilla, 542 U.S. 426, 434-35 (2004). In the immigration context, this individually is generally the ICE District director for the district where the alien is detained. Roman v. Ashcroft, 340 F.3d 312, 320 (6th Cir. 2003); see also Khodr v. Adducci, 697 F. Supp. 2d 774, 776 (E.D. Mich. 2010) ("The Court will follow appropriate Sixth Circuit authority and find the ICE District Director is the proper party to be sued in the habeas case here.").
As such, the undersigned recommends Respondent's Motion to Dismiss the other four named Respondents (under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 21) be granted.
Following review, and for the reasons stated above, the Court recommends Respondents' Motion to Dismiss Respondents Christopher J. LaRose, Michael V. Bernacke, Thomas Homan, and Kirstjen M. Nielsen (Doc. 9, at 12) be GRANTED.
s/James R. Knepp, II
United States Magistrate Judge ANY OBJECTIONS to this Report and Recommendation must be filed with the Clerk of Court within fourteen days of service of this notice. Failure to file objections within the specified time WAIVES the right to appeal the Magistrate Judge's recommendation. See United States v. Walters, 638 F.2d 947 (6th Cir. 1981); Thomas v. Arn, 474 U.S. 140 (1985).