Trump illegally sent troops into LA, federal judge rules

Donald Trump and administration officials violated the law by deploying the National Guard in Los Angeles in response to protests against his anti-immigration agenda, a federal judge in California has ruled.

- ALEX WOODWARD

The president’s troop deployment violated the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878, which prohibits “the use of the US military to execute domestic law”, according to yesterday’s decision from District Judge Charles Breyer.

Nearly 140 years later, President Trump and defence secretary Pete Hegseth deployed the National Guard and a cadre of US marines to Los Angeles, “ostensibly to quell a rebellion and ensure that federal immigration law was enforced”, Judge Breyer wrote.

“There were indeed protests in Los Angeles, and some individuals engaged in violence. Yet there was no rebellion, nor was civilian law enforcement unable to respond to the protests and enforce the law,” he added.

Following a brief bench trial last month, the judge determined that the administration illegally and “systematically used armed soldiers (whose identity was often obscured by protective armour) and military vehicles to set up protective perimeters and traffic blockades, engage in crowd control, and otherwise demonstrate a military presence in and around Los Angeles. In short, Defendants violated the Posse Comitatus Act,” Judge Breyer wrote.