A federal judge sharply restricted how the Trump administration can conduct immigration arrests in Washington, D.C., stopping short of an outright ban but blocking the broad dragnet tactics federal agents have used since the White House’s August law enforcement surge.
U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, ruled Tuesday night that while federal immigration officers may make warrantless civil arrests under the Immigration and Nationality Act, they cannot do so in the sweeping manner that has unfolded across Washington. Going forward, officers must either obtain an administrative warrant or have particularized probable cause that a person is both unlawfully present and likely to flee before a warrant can be secured.
“Defendants are preliminarily enjoined from enforcing their policy of conducting warrantless civil immigration arrests without probable cause to believe that the arrestee is likely to escape,” Howell wrote in the 88-page order. She also certified a class covering anyone arrested without a warrant and without an individualized flight risk assessment after President Donald Trump invoked Section 740 of the Home Rule Act on Aug. 11.
Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin slammed the decision in a statement to the Washington Examiner, saying the case was brought by pro-“open borders groups” to prevent the Trump administration from implementing its immigration agenda supported by his voters in 2024.
The court had highlighted cases like that of José Molina, a longtime D.C. resident with valid temporary protected status who was detained overnight despite being legally shielded from arrest, and of a Venezuelan asylum-seeker known as N.S., who was detained in a Home Depot parking lot, claimed that immigration officers asked no questions and shuttled him through detention centers for weeks.
In response to the decision, McLaughlin argued that, “contrary to the plaintiffs’ baseless claims, what makes someone a target for immigration enforcement is if they are illegally in the U.S.—NOT their skin color, race, or ethnicity.”
“Allegations that DHS law enforcement engages in ‘racial profiling’ are disgusting, reckless, and categorically FALSE. Worse, smears like those are driving a 1,150% increase in assaults on ICE officers and the 8000% increase in death threats against them,” she added.
While the decision marks a blow for the Trump administration, the court did not strip Immigration and Customs Enforcement of its long-standing statutory authority to conduct warrantless arrests in limited circumstances. Still, it imposes onerous tasks that will prohibit the blanket practice that resulted in more than 1,400 immigration-related arrests since Trump effectively federalized the Metropolitan Police Department and activated the D.C. National Guard as part of his “crime emergency.”
Immigrant-rights groups backed by the American Civil Liberties Union argued the government had turned that authority into a roving license to stop and detain Latino residents and even U.S. citizens.
The court highlighted cases such as José Molina, a longtime D.C. resident with valid temporary protected status who was detained overnight despite being legally shielded from arrest, and a Venezuelan asylum-seeker known as N.S., who was detained in a Home Depot parking lot, claimed that immigration officers asked no questions and shuttled him through detention centers for weeks.
Howell also rejected the administration’s portrayal of all removable immigrants as “criminals,” noting that immigration violations are civil matters and citing the Supreme Court’s warning in Arizona v. United States that mistreatment of noncitizens can prompt reciprocal harm to U.S. citizens abroad. Ever since the White House began its crime surge in the nation’s capital, more than 3,500 people have been arrested by federal agents, with more than 40% of those arrests being immigration related.
Howell also ordered the Department of Homeland Security to document the specific facts underlying any future warrantless arrest in the District and turn that information over to plaintiffs’ attorneys.
Judges in Washington have invited criticism with their aggressive rulings against the Trump administration, particularly Howell, who was singled out by Attorney General Pam Bondi earlier this year when Bondi accused her and two others of failing to be “impartial.”
“They are district judges trying to control our entire country, and they are trying to obstruct Donald Trump’s agenda,” Bondi said on Fox News in March.
USCIS FREEZES IMMIGRATION REQUESTS FROM 19 COUNTRIES
The ruling lands as the administration separately moves to halt all immigration applications from 19 “high-risk” countries following the Nov. 26 killings of two National Guard members.
Howell’s decision mirrors two other cases currently pending in Colorado and California brought by the ACLU.
DHS declined to say whether it will immediately appeal Howell’s ruling, but told the Washington Examiner the department “conducts enforcement operations in line with the U.S. Constitution and all applicable federal laws without fear, favor, or prejudice and will continue to do so.”
