A federal judge in Los Angeles has ordered U.S. immigration agents to stop making warrantless civil arrests across seven Southern California counties unless officers first determine, person by person, that the individual is likely to flee before a warrant can be obtained.
U.S. District Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong, who was nominated to the bench by former President Joe Biden, issued the preliminary injunction covering the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, which spans Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties.
The order requires that before making a warrantless arrest, an agent must make an individualized finding of probable cause that the person is likely to escape before a warrant could be secured, as spelled out in federal law and regulation.
“Defendants are enjoined from enforcing their policy and practice of making warrantless civil immigration arrests in this District without a prearrest individualized determination by the arresting agent or officer of probable cause that the person being arrested is likely to escape before a warrant can be obtained, as required by 8 U.S.C. 1357(a)(2) and 8 C.F.R. § 287.8(c)(2),” the order reads in part.
The judge was explicit that simply being in the country without legal status does not, on its own, satisfy that standard. “Mere presence within the United States in violation of United States immigration law is not, by itself, sufficient to conclude that a person is likely to escape before a warrant for arrest can be obtained,” the order states.
ACLU calls it a turning point
Mayra Joachin, senior staff attorney with the ACLU Foundation of Southern California, praised the ruling as a major check on federal enforcement tactics in the region.
“This ruling is one of the most important decisions to date in the community’s effort to end the federal government’s cruel and illegal practice of abducting people and separating them from their families,” Joachin said in a statement.
“By requiring immigration agents to follow the law’s requirement to make escape risk determinations before they can arrest someone without a warrant, this court order should put an end to hundreds — if not more — of unlawful arrests that continue throughout Southern California. We will closely monitor compliance with this court order, and expect the federal government to abide by it,” she added.
DHS pushes back
The Department of Homeland Security defended its agents’ authority, arguing the injunction runs counter to established legal practice.
“ICE has authority for lawful arrests where authorized under 8 USC 1357. Law enforcement officers use ‘reasonable suspicion’ to investigate immigration status and probable cause to make arrests consistent with the statute and the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The Supreme Court has already vindicated us on these practices,” DHS said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
The injunction leaves open the question of how strictly compliance will be enforced going forward, with the ACLU signaling it intends to track the government’s conduct closely in the coming months.
Add comment