Ninth Circuit Court Hands Down Another Victory for Sanctuary Cities

San Francisco, CA – Yesterday, the Ninth Circuit held that President Trump’s January 2017 Executive Order limiting funding to sanctuaries cities—issued just days after his inauguration—is unconstitutional. Describing the Executive Order as an effort to “cripple jurisdictions that do not assist in enforcing federal immigration policy,” the Court held that President Trump exceeded his authority by refusing to distribute funds allocated by Congress. The Court also called out and soundly rejected Attorney General Sessions’ repeated assertion that localities “violate federal law” by refusing to honor detainer requests. To the contrary, the Court explained, “ICE does not reimburse local jurisdictions for the costs of continued detention, and compliance with a request is voluntary.”

In Response, Jessica Bansal, NDLON’s Litigation Director, issued the Following statement:

“The Ninth Circuit decision is the latest in a string of legal victories for sanctuary cities. Together with last month’s rejection of the Trump Administration’s challenge to the California Values Act, the decision represents a groundswell of legal support for cities and states that chose to break with the Trump Administration’s cruel and destructive immigration policies.”

The decision can be found online here.

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