The Federal Court in San Francisco began to hear arguments on Monday in case that could define the limits of the presidential power to use military forces in domestic law enforcement. The three -day court proceedings focus on whether in 1878 Posse Comitatus, which limits the army in front of police civilians, in June in June in 1878 violated Posse Comitatus a law that limits the army before the civilian police in Los Angeles to Los Angeles.
Ernesto Santacruz Jr., Director of the Field Office for the Ministry of Internal Security in Los Angeles, testified that officers of immigration and customs enforcement (ICE) faced everyday threats before the arrival of military staff.
“We still had the situation to attack an officer,” Santacruz said. “But after deployment they decreased drastically”.
Trump’s administration claimed that forces were sent to protect federal assets and staff in the middle of increased protests against immigration raids.
Deployment
After 7th June, the protests arrested by ice in several places deployed the Ministry of Defense of about 4,000 California soldiers of the National Guard and 700 Marines in Los Angeles. This step came despite the objections of California Governor Gavin Newsom and city officials.
While most of the soldiers have left since then, according to the Pentagon, 250 National Guard members remain under federal control.
California challenges federal authority
The state of California asked the US district judge Charles Breyer to return control of the remaining members of the guard and prevent the federal government from using military forces to help enforce the right.
General Ma. Scott Sherman testified that the units were entitled to take certain coercive measures, including the establishment of security circuits around federal facilities and retention of civilians for police arrests.
Judge skeptical against the “rebellion” request
Trump federalized the California National Guard on the basis of a statute that allows presidential action in the cases of invasion, rebellion, or if the president cannot otherwise exercise the federal law.
Judge Breyer asked if the protests in Los Angeles met with this threshold and noted that “not” rebellions “.”
Breyer had previously decided if Trump’s administration violated the tenth amendment of the Constitution and exceeded its authority – although the Court of Appeal granted a temporary residence, allowing the federal inspection to continue during the court proceedings.
The role of military during protests
During the deployment, the members of the National Guard joined the ICE agents at Los Angeles raids. Marines largely guarded the federal building in the city center, which includes a detention center in the center of demonstrations.
Since June, federal agents have held undocumented immigrants in domestic compositions, car washing, bus stops and farms. State lawyers noted that some US citizens were also detained during these operations.
The case could set a national precedent
The outcome of this court proceedings could shape how far the president could go when deploying federalized units of the National Guard in the states without their consent – especially in politically charged situations.
(Tagstotranslate) deployment of naval marines in Los Angeles
