By Eniola Amadu
The U.S. Supreme Court has lifted a lower court order that barred federal agents from conducting sweeping immigration operations in Los Angeles.
In a 6–3 ruling, the court’s conservative majority granted a stay against the injunction issued by US District Judge Maame E. Frimpong, who had found “a mountain of evidence” that roving patrols of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents were conducting indiscriminate arrests based on race, language and occupation.
Her order, upheld by an appeals court, prevented agents from detaining individuals solely on such grounds.
The administration argued the ruling had unfairly restricted immigration enforcement during a nationwide crackdown.
Writing for the majority, the justices said stops based on “reasonable suspicion of illegal presence” have been a longstanding tool across administrations.
They noted that agents often targeted individuals working in jobs such as landscaping or construction, where documentation is uncommon and English proficiency is limited.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor, joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, issued a scathing dissent.
“Countless people in the Los Angeles area have been grabbed, thrown to the ground, and handcuffed simply because of their looks, their accents, and the fact that they make a living by doing manual labour,” she wrote. “Today, the Court needlessly subjects countless more to these same indignities.”
Civil rights groups, including the ACLU of Southern California, condemned the decision as a “devastating setback.” Plaintiffs in the case included both immigrants and US citizens, some of whom had been detained despite lawful status.
A plaintiff and a resident of Los Angeles, Brian Gavidia, was shown in a video shouting, “I was born here in the States” as agents handcuffed him; he was released after proving his identity.
California Governor Gavin Newsom accused Trump of targeting Latino families, calling ICE a “private police force.” Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said the ruling “isn’t just an attack on the people of Los Angeles, this is an attack on every person in every city in this country.”
The lawsuit, filed by the ACLU and immigrant advocates, will proceed in California even as ICE raids resume.
