US Judge Rules: Deployment of Military in California Unlawful

(Patria) - A US federal judge yesterday prevented President Donald Trump's administration from sending the military to combat crime in California.

The judge ruled that the deployment of the military in Los Angeles this summer was unlawful.

District Judge Charles Breyer in San Francisco concluded that Trump's administration violated the "Posse Comitatus Act" by sending 4,000 National Guard members and 700 Marines to Los Angeles with the aim of protecting federal agents in dealing with illegal migration.

This law severely restricts the use of federal units for law enforcement within the country.

The decision dealt a blow to Trump's efforts to expand the military's role on US territory, which critics consider a dangerous expansion of executive powers that could cause tensions between soldiers and ordinary people.

The judge postponed the decision's enforcement until September 12, and Trump's administration is likely to appeal in the meantime.

The Pentagon, the Department of Justice, and the White House have not yet responded to requests for comment.

The decision applies only to California, not the entire country.

The judge said that Trump's desire to send soldiers to Chicago and other cities contributed to his decision, recalling that the president said at a cabinet meeting on August 27 that he had the right to "do whatever he wants... if he thinks the country is in danger".

Trump stated that soldiers were needed in Los Angeles to protect federal agents who were apprehending illegal immigrants after such raids caused mass protests.

"There is no question that federal agents should be able to do their job without fear for their safety. But using that as an excuse to send soldiers alongside federal agents wherever they go is too much and would undermine the very purpose of the 'Posse Comitatus Act'," stated the judge, nominated by Democratic President Bill Clinton, in his reasoning.

The deployment of the military in Los Angeles drew strong condemnation from Democrats, who claim Trump is using it to suppress resistance to his immigration policies.

"The people of California have achieved much-needed accountability against Trump's illegal militarization of an American city," assessed California Governor Gavin Newsom, a prominent Democrat who filed the lawsuit, on X.

Trump has since deployed the National Guard to the capital, Washington, and threatened to send it to Chicago, the country's third-largest city. He cited high crime rates as justification, although crime in both cities is falling.