Attorney General Nessel Files Amicus Brief Supporting Case to Block ICE and CBP from Unlawful Practices in Los Angeles

LANSING – Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel joined a multistate coalition in submitting an amicus brief (PDF) in support of plaintiffs in Perdomo et al. v. Noem et al, which seeks a temporary restraining order to enjoin the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) from engaging in unlawful stops of Los Angeles residents during immigration sweeps. The lawsuit comes amid the Trump Administration conducting aggressive, militaristic immigration raids in Los Angeles that have terrified immigrant and non-immigrant residents alike, chilled community members’ participation in civic society, and impeded law enforcement and public safety.

“Allowing these tactics in Los Angeles sets a dangerous and unacceptable precedent – one that could easily spread to states like Michigan, where ICE raids have already shaken communities,” Nessel said. “When masked, heavily armed federal agents operate with no identification, they threaten public safety and erode public trust. I stand with my colleagues in confronting these unlawful practices now before they become the new normal.”

During his presidential campaign, President Donald Trump promised an aggressive and militarized crackdown on undocumented immigration, praising Eisenhower-era enforcement efforts that involved mass arrests and deportations of 300,000 people, including U.S. citizens. Now, masked immigration agents are conducting unannounced enforcement actions throughout communities and, in all too many instances, stopping residents without so much as a reasonable suspicion of unlawful conduct, making people afraid to leave their homes. The dragnet has resulted in U.S. citizens being wrongfully detained and has created a culture of fear.

In their motion for temporary restraining order, plaintiffs allege that ICE and CBP have a policy and practice of engaging in unconstitutional stops that are not based on a reasonable, individualized suspicion of unlawful presence, but are instead based on racial profiling. 

In the amicus brief, the attorneys general support plaintiffs, arguing that preliminary injunctive relief is in the public interest because: 

• CBP and ICE engaging in unlawful stops of Californians without a reasonable suspicion of unlawful activity has harmed local economies, public health, and several other core facets of daily life.
• Federal law enforcement’s tactics in conducting these stops, which include wearing masks and concealing the law enforcement entity they work for, have impeded local law enforcement and threatened public safety. 

In filing the brief, Attorney General Nessel joins the attorneys general of California, Arizona, Colorado Connecticut, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington.

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