The Supreme Court agreed Monday to weigh in on the issue of whether some immigrants with criminal records can be detained indefinitely.

The court accepted a case, Genalo v. Black, from New York state involving a legal immigrant from the Dominican Republic arrested by immigration enforcement after an assault conviction and held for 21 months during deportation proceedings.

An appeals court ruling in the case found that an “unreasonably prolonged” detention requires a bond hearing in which the government must show “clear and convincing evidence” that the immigrant would be a flight risk or a danger to the community if released.

Image

The Supreme Court on Monday also asked attorneys for arguments about whether the immigrant’s 2020 release makes the case moot.

Indefinite Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention for immigrants either with criminal convictions or a record of illegally crossing a border has become legally controversial. Some appeals courts have upheld the Trump administration detention policy, while others have declared it unconstitutional.

Individual judges have mostly ruled that non-criminals in immigration detention are entitled to a bond hearing or should be freed outright.