Denver Immigration Bonds Hit $20,000 Median

TRAC court data shows Denver's September median immigration bond was more than 13 times Bloomington, Minnesota's.

Updated on Nov. 14, 2026 in Immigration

Denver Immigration Bonds Hit $20,000 Median

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Court data published by TRAC shows the median immigration bond in Denver reached $20,000 in September, compared with $1,500 in Bloomington, Minnesota, and a national median of $7,500. Immigration judges granted bond to 2,646 people in September out of just under 10,000 bond hearings.

Why it matters

The gap highlights how much bond outcomes can vary by location for people held in immigration detention, with bond amounts that can determine whether a detained person can be released while their case proceeds. Only 24% of immigrants whose cases ended in removal orders in August had an attorney, a factor that may affect how bond requests are presented.

TRAC's analysis of court records shows 2,646 people were granted bond out of just under 10,000 hearings in September, with Mexican nationals accounting for the largest number of hearings in both cities. The extraction does not explain the cause of the wide variation in median bond amounts between Denver and Bloomington.

The players

Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC)

TRAC is a data research center at Syracuse University that compiles and analyzes federal immigration court records.

The details

The Department of Homeland Security initially sets immigration bond, and a detained person may ask an immigration judge to reconsider it, with no filing fee for requesting a bond hearing. Judges weigh eligibility, potential danger to people or property, likelihood of appearing for future proceedings and national security concerns, and a 2026 Board of Immigration Appeals decision lists factors such as a fixed U.S. address, length of residence, family connections, employment history and prior court appearances.

September 2026: Denver's median bond reached $20,000 while Bloomington's was $1,500.
Fiscal 2026: Denver held a $20,000 median; Bloomington's full-year median was $3,000.
August 2026: Only 24% of immigrants with removal orders had an attorney.
Sept. 15, 2026: TRAC published its report on immigrant legal representation.
Oct. 26, 2026: TRAC published its bond court data analysis.

Legal Context

TRAC's court-record series shows attorney representation for immigrants falling from 63% in fiscal 2021 to 32% in fiscal 2026, and the new bond figures add a measure of how those representation patterns sit alongside widely varying detention outcomes across cities.

For a detained person or their family, the bond amount set in a given city can determine whether release is possible while a case moves forward. Requesting a bond hearing or asking a judge to reconsider bond carries no filing fee, according to the extraction.

The takeaway

Bond amounts for people in immigration detention can differ by more than tenfold between cities, and the reasons behind those differences are not yet explained by the court data. Anyone facing bond decisions can ask an immigration judge to reconsider at no filing fee.