Judge bars Trump administration from denying federal funds to ‘sanctuary’ cities

A federal judge in California barred the Trump administration from denying or conditioning the use of federal funds to "sanctuary" jurisdictions on Thursday.

U.S. District Judge William Orrick said that portions of President Donald Trump’s executive orders were unconstitutional.

The injunction was sought by San Francisco and more than a dozen other municipalities that limit cooperation with federal immigration efforts. 

Cities file an injunction 

What they're saying:

Lawyers for the Justice Department argued that it was too early for Orrick to grant an injunction when the Trump administration hasn’t taken any action to withhold specific amounts or to lay out conditions on specific grants.

But Orrick said this was essentially what government lawyers argued during Trump’s first term when the Republican issued a similar order.

The other side: "Their well-founded fear of enforcement is even stronger than it was in 2017," Orrick wrote, citing Trump’s executive orders as well as directives from Attorney General Pam Bondi, other federal agencies and Justice Department lawsuits filed against Chicago and New York.

Besides San Francisco and Santa Clara County, which includes a third plaintiff, the city of San José, there are 13 other plaintiffs in the lawsuit, which include Seattle and King County, Washington; Portland, Oregon; Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota; New Haven, Connecticut; and Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Trump’s order on sanctuary jurisdictions

The backstory:

One executive order issued by Trump directs Bondi and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to withhold federal money from sanctuary jurisdictions. The second order directs every federal agency to ensure that payments to state and local governments do not "abet so-called ‘sanctuary’ policies that seek to shield illegal aliens from deportation."

It's unclear if federal agencies will abide by the order. On Thursday, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy issued a reminder to recipients of federal transportation funding that they are expected to follow federal law, including on immigration enforcement, or face potential consequences.

What are sanctuary jurisdictions/cities?

Dig deeper:

There is no strict definition for sanctuary policies or sanctuary cities, but the terms generally describe limited cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

ICE enforces immigration laws nationwide but seeks state and local help in alerting federal authorities of immigrants wanted for deportation and holding that person until federal officers take custody.

Leaders of sanctuary jurisdictions say their communities are safer because immigrants feel they can communicate with local police without fear of deportation. It is also a way for municipalities to focus their dollars on crime locally, they say.