Federal Judge Orders End to Federal Control of California National Guard in Los Angeles

A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to terminate its deployment of California National Guard troops in Los Angeles and return their control to the state. U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer granted California officials' request for a preliminary injunction against the federal use of the Guard without Governor Gavin Newsom's consent, particularly to support Trump's immigration enforcement efforts. Although the decision is on hold until the following Monday, this ruling follows a controversial move by the federal government to override state authority by deploying troops during protests against immigration actions in June. The number of troops had already decreased to about 100 by late October.

Judge Breyer criticized the administration's justification for the deployment, rejecting its claims as "shocking" and borderline "misrepresentation," and accused it of trying to establish a national police force using state troops. The administration plans to appeal the ruling. This marks the first instance in decades that National Guard troops were deployed without a governor's request, and similar federal attempts to use Guard units in Democratic-run cities like Portland and Chicago have also been blocked by other courts.