California sues ICE to halt arrests at courthouses

California Attorney General Rob Bonta claims immigration enforcement agents have stopped witnesses and victims of crime from coming to court.LOS ANGELES (CN) — California on Thursday sued U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to stop its agents from conducting civil immigration enforcement actions at courthouses in the state.In a complaint filed in Los Angeles federal court, California Attorney General Rob Bonta claims the state’s ability to administer justice has been compromised because plaintiffs and victims are scared to come to court.“Defendants have also knowingly acted in contravention of the law,” the attorney general argues. “The U.S. Supreme Court and lower federal and state courts have long recognized the common law privilege against civil arrests of those attending court — a privilege that rests on the principle that a judicial system cannot function if parties and witnesses alike fear that their appearance in court will result in civil arrest.”The state claims ICE leadership instructed agents nationwide just days ago to aim for 3,000 daily immigration arrests, with a target of 19,000 arrests per week.ICE also issued a directive to further target California, Bonta says in the complaint, reportedly instructing their officers “to go after anybody” for a 45-day enforcement surge from San Diego to San Francisco. “Operation Safe California,” as the operation is called, is expected to last through November, with officers supposedly cleared to “pick up anybody."“And as California has already seen, defendants view the state’s courthouses as a convenient stomping ground,” Bonta claims.The immigration arrests at courthouses have been highly disruptive, California says, and often involve use of force. The attorney general describes the arrests as highly visible to the public, insisting that survivors of domestic or family violence have learned courthouses are no longer safe places to appear.As a result, proceedings have been interrupted and delayed, and in some instances they are altogether not pursued, according to the state.California claims the purported ICE directive authorizing widespread immigration enforcement at courthouses is arbitrary and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act — the U.S. statute that control how federal agencies make policy decisions — because it failed to consider the chilling effect on access to justice and the overall functioning of state judicial systems.ICE, the attorney general says, also failed to explain its removal of an earlier restriction on courthouse enforcement in jurisdictions where it was prohibited.In addition, the policy to conduct immigration arrests at courthouses violates the 10th Amendment because it interferes with California’s sovereign powers, according to the attorney general.The state asks for a court order to stop ICE from conducting any further immigration enforcement action at California courthouses.The U.S. Justice Department declined to comment on the lawsuit.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads