Federal Judge Blocks ICE Illegal Alien Raids at Places of Worship
By The Blog Source
On Monday, a federal judge prohibited the Trump administration from conducting immigration raids at Quaker, Baptist, and Sikh places of worship that are suing the administration over its new enforcement policy.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) rescinded long-standing policy guidance that directed federal immigration authorities to refrain from conducting enforcement operations in specific "protected areas," including schools and places of worship, following President Trump's retakeover of the White House.
U.S. District Judge Theodore Chuang, who was appointed by former President Obama and is in charge of the religious groups' lawsuit against the rescinding order, said that his decision does not definitively address whether the action is in line with the First Amendment and the groups' federally granted religious protections.
"A return to the status quo is therefore warranted until the exact contours of what is necessary to avoid unlawful infringement on religious exercise are determined later in this case," Chuang wrote in his ruling. "At this early stage of the case, the Court finds only that the 2025 Policy's lack of any meaningful limitations or safeguards on such activity likely does not satisfy these constitutional and statutory requirements as to Plaintiffs," Chuang wrote in his decision. "This is because it deals with the sensitive and contentious issue of when and under what circumstances law enforcement may enter places of worship to conduct operations without a warrant."
The judge's order is not applicable across the country. It only stops the administration from enforcing immigration laws at the religious organizations that filed the lawsuit: Sikh Temple Sacramento, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (CBF), and several Quaker organizations.
Chuang ruled, "Plaintiffs have supplied evidence that their congregants' propensity to attend worship and participate in ministry services is currently being chilled, and that attendance at such activities has already dropped, particularly at CBF and the Sikh Temple."
District Judge Theodore Chuang directed the administration to refer back to a 2021 memo issued by Alejandro Mayorkas, the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), during the Biden administration. The memo prohibited the department, which is in charge of immigration enforcement agencies, from conducting raids and making arrests at schools, hospitals, and places of worship.
Since taking office last month, the Trump administration has launched a combination of steps on immigration and the border, including the change in DHS guidance. A number of those initiatives, like actions that limit birthright citizenship, halt refugee admissions, and hasten the expulsion of some migrants from the nation, have also been challenged in court. In order to quickly stop the new policy, both plaintiff groups have requested emergency relief; however, the courts in those instances have not yet decided the requests.
Deporting illegal aliens who have committed crimes in the US or who endanger public safety is the administration's top goal, as it has stated time and time again.
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