Florida jails used repeat rebookings to bypass federal 72-hour detention limits
Analysis of federal data reveals Pinellas and Orange County jails repeatedly rebooked immigrants held for ICE, with one woman held for 26 days in total.
A nationwide analysis by ProPublica has found that two Florida jails engaged in unusually high numbers of repeat rebookings of immigrants held for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The practice appears to have been used to circumvent federal rules limiting local jail detention to 72 hours. Between July 2025 and early 2026, Orange County Jail rebooked 559 individuals two or more times, while Pinellas County Jail rebooked 174.
Legal experts describe the rebookings as an effort to evade detention standards, noting that the process typically occurs in secret. In one notable case, a Mexican woman was rebooked into Pinellas County Jail ten times, resulting in a cumulative stay of 26 days. Another detainee, Soumia Bensalah, a French Moroccan with a pending green card application, was rebooked five times in December 2025. She was transferred daily to an ICE office while shackled, according to records obtained by ProPublica.
The scale of the practice in these two counties is unmatched nationally, with other U.S. jails rebooking no more than 10 immigrants twice. Of the 423 immigrants rebooked at least twice in Pinellas and Orange counties through December 2025, 27 per cent had no criminal charges or convictions except for traffic-related offences. In Orange County, 30 immigrants were rebooked within 15 minutes or less of their 72-hour limit expiring, with five rebooked in as little as one minute.
Orange County ceased the practice in early February 2026 following public opposition and a letter from County Mayor Jerry Demings to ICE. The county subsequently renegotiated its contract with ICE to limit holds to two days, causing ICE bookings to plummet from 692 in January 2026 to two in July 2026. In contrast, Pinellas County’s rebookings slowed in January 2026 and appeared to stop by July 2026, though single stays exceeding the 72-hour limit increased during that period.
Pinellas County Jail held at least 157 immigrants for ICE for longer than three business days in a single booking since January 2025, compared to only five in the prior two years. A spokesperson for the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office stated the facility holds people for ICE for only up to 72 hours before releasing them, but declined further comment after ProPublica shared its findings. At least 29 immigrants held in these counties filed habeas corpus petitions to challenge their detention.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) responded to ProPublica’s questions by stating that ICE is not breaking laws by making custody determinations based on bed space. DHS also noted that detainees receive due process, though legal experts argue the only real recourse for those repeatedly rebooked is to file an emergency petition in federal court.
