Free Speech

So concludes a federal district in Louisiana, disagreeing with a Ninth Circuit panel.

Eugene Volokh | 1.2.2026 9:31 AM

From Judge Terry Doughty (W.D. La.) Tuesday in Lozano v. Ladwig:

Petitioner is a Mexican national, who lives in Knoxville, Tennessee. Twenty-two years ago, while a minor, Petitioner and his family entered the United States on a B-1 visa. They, however, overstayed their visas. In 2011, the Department of Homeland Security ("DHS") issued Petitioner a Notice to Appear, charging him removable for overstaying his visa. In 2013, an Immigration Judge administratively closed Petitioner's removal proceedings after finding Petitioner eligible for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals ("DACA"). His DACA status has since lapsed.

In 2024, Petitioner was charged in Tennessee state court for drug-related charges [and apparently convicted for possession of methamphetamine -EV]. On October 14, 2025, DHS issued a Warrant for Arrest of Alien against Petitioner. The next day, U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement ("ICE") arrested Petitioner at a Tennessee state courthouse when Petitioner went there for a probation-related drug test.

Plaintiff sought habeas corpus, and a temporary restraining order against continued detention, arguing "that the government arrested him in retaliation for publicly criticizing the Trump administration's immigration policies." But the court rejected this claim:

The First Amendment "prohibits government officials from subjecting an individual to retaliatory actions for engaging in protected speech. If an official takes adverse action against someone based on that forbidden motive, and non-retaliatory grounds are in fact insufficient to provoke the adverse consequences, the injured person may generally seek relief........

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