A lawsuit is being heard in a San Francisco courthouse regarding the federal government’s historic deployment of National Guard troops to Los Angeles, which was mandated by President Donald Trump to support his immigration enforcement agenda.
California’s legal team contended before U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer on Tuesday that the Posse Comitatus Act, a 19th-century rule that forbids the military from performing civilian law enforcement duties, was broken by the soldiers’ presence on city streets.
The administration’s goal, according to Meghan Strong of the California Attorney General’s Office, was to use such overwhelming military force that any dissent to their program was suppressed.
Attorney Eric Hamilton of the Justice Department responded by arguing that the military should have been involved due to the significant violence in Los Angeles and that the troops were only present to safeguard federal agents and property.
Following days of protests and rioting brought on by widespread immigration sweeps, President Trump sent 4,000 troops of the National Guard and 700 Marines to Los Angeles in June. Gavin Newsom, the governor of California, challenged the ruling and filed a lawsuit, claiming it violated federal laws prohibiting military involvement in domestic law enforcement.
Judge Breyer will also take into account whether Newsom is legally qualified to file the lawsuit. There is no deadline for his decision.
The government has maintained that its actions are justified by the Posse Comitatus Act’s exceptions, which permit the military to protect federal property and personnel. California responds that troops participated in illegal actions that the state claims amount to unlawful policing, such as erecting obstacles, rerouting traffic, and conducting arrests.
Although such acts are normally forbidden, government witnesses admitted that they may be justified in cases when federal facilities or persons are in danger.
During closing arguments, Breyer challenged the administration’s understanding of presidential power by asking Hamilton: Is it a rebellion just because the president says it is?
Despite the withdrawal of numerous troops, California Attorney General Rob Bonta said about 300 members of the National Guard still take part in immigration sweeps and impose restrictions on civilian travel within the state.
Trump’s separate plan to send hundreds of National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., to fight crime is unlikely to be stopped by the case’s conclusion; he has indicated that similar strategy may be repeated in other American cities.
