U.S. appeals court keeps ban on Los Angeles federal immigration arrests

A U.S. federal appeals court on Friday upheld a lower court’s temporary ban preventing immigration-related arrests in Los Angeles without probable cause, rejecting the Trump administration’s request to lift the order.

The three-judge panel from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals found that the plaintiffs are likely to prove federal agents conducted arrests based on individuals’ race, language, or where they lived or worked rather than any legal grounds.

President Donald Trump had deployed National Guard troops and U.S. Marines to Los Angeles in June in response to protests over immigration raids, an unusual step that brought military forces into domestic policing roles.

The lawsuit, originally filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) in June and later joined by Los Angeles and several Southern California cities, accused federal immigration agents of using illegal practices, including racial profiling, to meet deportation targets set by the administration.

Last month, a California judge barred the federal government from using race or language as the basis for arrests and from blocking detained immigrants from accessing legal counsel.

In the appeals court’s unsigned ruling, judges agreed that immigration officers cannot detain individuals solely based on race or ethnicity, speaking Spanish or accented English, or being present at certain locations such as bus stops, car washes, day labourer sites, or farms.

The Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not comment on the ruling as of late Friday.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass welcomed the court’s decision, calling it a continued shield for communities facing “cruel and aggressive” enforcement tactics.

“This ruling ensures that immigration agents using racial profiling and other illegal methods remain restricted,” Bass said.

ACLU Senior Attorney Mohammad Tajsar also praised the outcome, saying the decision reaffirms that the administration’s militarised actions in Los Angeles violated constitutional rights and caused lasting harm across the region.

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