In a significant ruling that echoes far beyond the boundaries of California, the Supreme Court has given the Trump administration the green light—at least temporarily—to resume immigration enforcement operations in Los Angeles County.
The decision, split 6-3 along ideological lines, is a win not just for the Trump-era deportation agenda but also for the broader principle that immigration enforcement remains a federal responsibility, not something to be overridden by activist judges or local officials.
The case, still winding its way through the Ninth Circuit, centers on whether Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) violated the Fourth Amendment by stopping suspected illegal immigrants without adequate justification. Plaintiffs argued that ICE agents were making unconstitutional stops—appearing unannounced at farms, car washes, and public spaces, allegedly targeting people based on race and language.
But the Supreme Court’s majority wasn’t buying it. While the Court gave no detailed explanation, Justice Brett Kavanaugh issued a concurring opinion, striking at the heart of the plaintiff's arguments. Kavanaugh clarified that reasonable suspicion—a fairly low legal threshold—is all that's required for these stops, and that racial or ethnic appearance, while not determinative, can be one relevant factor among many.
“To be clear,” he wrote, “apparent ethnicity alone cannot furnish reasonable suspicion; under this Court’s case law regarding immigration stops, however, it can be a ‘relevant factor’ when considered along with other salient factors.”
This ruling temporarily overturns a lower court injunction issued in July, which had halted ICE operations in Los Angeles. The Ninth Circuit upheld that injunction, prompting the Trump administration to seek emergency relief from the Supreme Court—a move that now seems entirely justified given the majority’s view of federal authority in immigration matters.
Reaction from the Department of Homeland Security was swift and decisive. A spokesperson described the ruling as “a win for the safety of Californians and the rule of law,” pointedly noting that Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass had been using her office to shield criminal illegal aliens—including murderers, rapists, and gang members—from deportation.
Attorney General Pam Bondi praised the end of what she called “judicial micromanagement,” declaring that ICE could now resume roving patrols to enforce federal immigration law effectively.
Of course, the dissent from Justice Sonia Sotomayor—joined by the Court’s liberal bloc—warned that the decision could invite racial profiling and was “irreconcilable” with constitutional protections. The ACLU quickly echoed that sentiment, portraying the decision as a slide into a “papers please” society for anyone who appears Latino or speaks Spanish.