Muhammad Zahid Chaudhry v. Pamela Bondi

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON AT TACOMA MUHAMMAD ZAHID CHAUDHRY, CASE NO. 2:25-cv-02339-DGE- Petitioner, MLP 12 v. ORDER DENYING MOTION FOR 13 PAMELA BONDI, ANCILLARY RELIEF (DKT. NO. 58) 14 Respondent.

16 On January 7, 2026, Petitioner moved for ancillary relief requesting the Court order Respondents to return the following personal items either taken from him and not returned or left behind when he was released from detention: his Department of Veterans Affairs identification card, his children’s birth certificates, a money order, and family letters and photographs. (Dkt.

20 No. 58 at 2.) However, habeas petitions are the improper vehicle for detainees or former detainees seeking the return of personal property. “Property-related claims are not within the scope of the writ of habeas corpus.” Burgess v. California, No. 2:22-CV-0573-DAD-DMC-P, 2022 WL 4238265, at *1 (E.D. Cal. Sept. 14, 2022) (collecting cases dismissing property claims brought in the habeas context), report and recommendation adopted, No. 2:22-cv-00573-DAD- DMC (HC), 2022 WL 17178361 (E.D. Cal. Nov. 23, 2022). Accordingly, the Court ORDERS that Petitioner’s motion for ancillary relief (Dkt. No. 58) is DENIED.

5 Dated this 29th day of January, 2026. a David G. Estudillo 8 United States District Judge