Opinion ID: 158852
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Background Facts and Procedures

Text: 2 Plaintiff Tuong Huan Van Dinh 4 is an alien who had permanent resident alien status until he was convicted of a criminal act and was sentenced to deportation. See Appellees' Supp. App. at 11, 13. Tuong apparently did not appeal the order of deportation to the Board of Immigration Appeals, see id. at 13-14. Instead he filed a habeas corpus action in federal district court, individually and on behalf of others similarly situated, challenging the constitutionality of holding deported aliens for an indeterminate time when their country of origin refuses to allow them reentry. Cf. Galaviz-Medina v. Wooten, 27 F.3d 487, 491-94 (10th Cir. 1994) (noting, under former immigration statutes, that habeas petitions are proper vehicle for constitutional claims when alien does not appeal from a final order of deportation but raises constitutional concerns arising from subsequent decisions). The habeas action was filed in March 1998, is numbered in the district court as No. 98-CV-652, and is hereinafter referred to as the habeas action. 3 Tuong was incarcerated in a facility in Aurora, Colorado, pending deportation. On April 23, 1998, Tuong and other aliens confined at the Aurora facility were informally notified that there was a 'distinct probability' that all Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) prisoners at that facility would be moved because the INS's contract with the facility would expire on April 28 and there was an impasse in extension negotiations. See Appellant's App. at 111 (Class Action Complaint). On April 24, sixty-five unknown plaintiffs were transferred to various unknown locations. Id. 4 On April 24, Tuong filed an amended application for habeas corpus. See id. at 13. He challenged as unconstitutional the possibility of his transfer, alleging that he would be denied his right to counsel if moved to a remote area, and requested the court to either issue a writ directing the INS to place him in another Denver-area facility or order the INS to place him on bail. See id. at 8, 17. The same day, he also filed a motion to maintain a class action for the amended application, see id. at 22, and a motion for a temporary restraining order (TRO) that requested the same remedies as the amended application, see id. at 32, 37. 5 On April 24, the court issued a TRO ordering that Tuong and the class not be transferred out of the Denver area before April 27. In the event no stipulation was reached between the parties, the court set a hearing for April 27 on the matters. See id. at 102. On April 27, in its response to Tuong's motions, the INS challenged the court's subject matter jurisdiction but also asserted that neither Tuong nor any other alien with matters pending before the federal courts would be transferred out of the Denver area. See id. at 46-47, 73-74. It also stated that the INS would transport back to Colorado as necessary any individuals currently represented over whom the court has jurisdiction and whose presence is required by the immigration court or any federal court. Id. at 74. 6 The day of the hearing, Tuong and the other named plaintiffs filed a Bivens class action complaint (numbered in the district court as No. 98-CV-926) which asserted jurisdiction based on 28 U.S.C. § 1331. The complaint requested injunctive relief restraining all alien transfers until local counsel had an opportunity to interview their clients and potential pro bono clients, injunctive relief restraining transfer outside the Denver area of those aliens with an established attorney-client relationship (or, in the alternative, ordering that those aliens be released on bail or on their own recognizance), and costs and attorney fees. See id. at 113. Along with the complaint, plaintiffs filed a motion to certify it as a class action, a motion to consolidate the suit with Tuong's habeas action, and another motion for TRO. See id. at 105. 7 At the April 27 hearing on the TRO motion filed in Tuong's habeas case, the parties stipulated to the district court that a temporary contract extension with the Aurora facility had been signed, so the TRO issues were moot for the time being. See Appellees' Supp. App. at 2. The court denied plaintiffs' motion filed in the Bivens class action to consolidate the class action suit with Tuong's habeas action. See id. at 3. Plaintiffs then suggested that the court stay everything in the Bivens class action until the parties filed a status report, and the court agreed. See id. at 4. 8 The INS executed a new contract for the Aurora facility on May 19, and on May 22, the INS moved the court to dismiss as moot the Bivens class action. At a June 3 hearing, the court continued the motion to dismiss for a week. See id. at 8. The court then again turned to the motion for TRO filed in Tuong's habeas case. See id. at 9. The parties informed the court that they had reached a stipulation with regard to Tuong's bail and that the TRO issues were moot. See id. 9 On June 10, plaintiffs filed their concurrence in the INS's motion to dismiss the Bivens class action, along with a motion for attorney fees and costs brought pursuant to the EAJA. See id. at 17; Appellants' App. at 105. The court denied the motion for attorney fees and costs, concluding that plaintiffs had not shown that they were the prevailing party in the underlying Bivens class action or that the position of the INS was not substantially justified. See Appellant's App. at 244.