Supreme Court removes limits on Los Angeles immigration raids siding with Trump

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: President Donald Trump secured two major legal victories on Monday. The US Supreme Court gave Immigration and Customs Enforcement the authority to resume “roving” arrests and raids in California.

Soon after, Chief Justice John Roberts ruled that Trump can remove Federal Trade Commissioner Rebecca Slaughter, one of two Democratic commissioners he dismissed earlier this year.

Supreme Court turns over temporary restraining order on immigration raids

The Supreme Court’s immigration decision overturned a temporary restraining order issued last month by US District Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong.

That ruling had blocked ICE agents from considering race, ethnic background, language, or workplace when making arrests.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and other Trump officials had urged the high court to throw out the order.

“Needless to say, no one thinks that speaking Spanish or working in construction always creates reasonable suspicion,” US Solicitor General John Sauer wrote in Trump’s petition.

Sauer added, “Nor does anyone suggest those are the only factors federal agents even consider. But in many situations, such factors — alone or in combination — can heighten the likelihood that someone is unlawfully present in the United States.”

Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote in his concurrence that such elements provide “at least reasonable suspicion of illegal presence” in the country.

“Importantly, reasonable suspicion means only that immigration officers may briefly stop the individual and inquire about immigration status,” added Kavanaugh.

Sonia Sotomayor blasts decision in dissent

The court’s 6-3 ruling appeared to divide along ideological lines, Politico reported. The decision comes as ICE agents intensify enforcement efforts in Washington under Trump’s federal takeover of the capital’s law enforcement.

In its order, the majority said that agents sometimes make stops involving individuals in landscaping or construction jobs “that often do not require paperwork and are therefore attractive to illegal immigrants, and who do not speak much if any English.”

The decision stated, “Immigration stops based on reasonable suspicion of illegal presence have been an important component of US immigration enforcement for decades, across several presidential administrations.”

Justice Sonia Sotomayor, joined by two liberal colleagues, issued a sharp dissent. “Countless people in the Los Angeles area have been grabbed, thrown to the ground, and handcuffed simply because of their looks, their accents, and the fact they make a living by doing manual labor. Today, the Court needlessly subjects countless more to these exact same indignities,” wrote Sotomayor as per Courthouse News.

Divided Internet reacts to Supreme Court decision

The ruling sparked a wave of online reactions; while right-leaning individuals celebrated the decision, left-leaning groups were left in relative shock.

“Good! Now the law can be enforced again, this was just another frivolous lawsuit and waste of taxpayer money by the democrats,” one user wrote on X.

Another posted, “Supreme Court clears way for stricter enforcement.” One more added, “With this ruling, DHS can factor in location, Spanish speaking, physical appearance, line of work, and more in their deportation sweeps. This is a BIG victory!”

Others were critical. “You can’t give something to the president that he already had. The court just affirmed the president was right all along,” another user commented.

One more wrote, “What a serious travesty. Deliberately weakening the rule of law,” in response to the ruling.

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.