Importance Score: 72 / 100 🔴
Federal Judge Declines to Block Immigration Enforcement at Houses of Worship
WASHINGTON, D.C. – A federal judge on Friday rejected a request to prevent immigration enforcement officials from carrying out operations at houses of worship. The ruling comes in response to a lawsuit brought by religious groups challenging a recent policy implemented by the Trump administration.
U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich of the Washington D.C. court issued the decision in the legal action initiated by over two dozen Christian and Jewish organizations, representing millions of individuals across the nation.
Limited Enforcement Actions and Lack of “Credible Threat”
Judge Friedrich determined that only a limited number of such enforcement actions have occurred and that the plaintiff religious groups had not demonstrated sufficient legal harm to warrant a preliminary injunction.
“At this stage and based on the current evidence, the plaintiffs have not presented the necessary demonstration of a ‘credible threat’ of enforcement,” Judge Friedrich stated in her ruling. She further noted, “The existing record does not indicate that houses of worship are being specifically targeted.”
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Policy Revision and Agent Discretion
On January 20th, upon returning to office, the Trump administration reversed a Department of Homeland Security directive that had previously restricted locations for migrant arrests. The revised policy now permits field agents, utilizing “common sense” and “discretion,” to conduct immigration enforcement operations at houses of worship without requiring prior supervisory authorization.
Plaintiffs Argue Policy Reversal
Attorneys for the plaintiffs argued that the new Homeland Security directive deviates from a long-standing, 30-year-old government policy that discouraged immigration enforcement operations in “protected areas” or “sensitive locations”.
Conflicting Rulings in Similar Cases
In February, another federal judge in Maryland issued a ruling against the Trump administration in a comparable case initiated by a coalition of Quakers and other religious groups. U.S. District Judge Theodore Chang’s order in that instance was specifically applicable to those particular plaintiffs.
Conversely, in a separate lawsuit in Colorado concerning the reversal of a similar policy that had restricted immigration arrests at schools, a judge ruled in favor of the administration.