Federal Judge Sets Trial Over Trump's Use of Military in Los Angeles
Source: Democracy Docket
July 10, 2025
A federal judge set a three-day trial in August to determine if President Donald Trump’s ongoing use of the California National Guard and Marines in Los Angeles violates federal law.
The non-jury bench trial set by Judge Charles Breyer will run Aug. 11-13 and will address whether Trump’s use of the military in the second-largest city in the U.S. has violated the Posse Comitatus Act. The act criminalizes the use of the armed forces to enforce civilian laws under normal circumstances.
Though Trump officials said troops were being sent to Los Angeles to protect federal property and personnel, soldiers have been authorized to accompany Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials on immigration raids and temporarily detain civilians. Troops have also been used to assist the Drug Enforcement Administration’s routine counter-drug operations hundreds of miles away from the city.
Such arrangements heavily blur the line between military and civilian authority and get the military closer to direct law enforcement without invocation of the Insurrection Act, one of the president’s most powerful emergency authorities that temporarily suspends Posse Comitatus.
Read more: https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/judge-trump-trial-military-use-los-angeles/
Link to ORDER (PDF) - https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cand.450934/gov.uscourts.cand.450934.109.0.pdf
NEW: A federal judge set a three-day trial in August to determine if Trump’s ongoing use of the California National Guard and Marines in Los Angeles violates a federal law that criminalizes the use of armed forces to enforce civilian laws under normal circumstances.
— Democracy Docket (@democracydocket.com) 2025-07-10T16:17:43.676Z
From: @jaknutson.bsky.social
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