Appeals court rules Trump unlawfully deployed National Guard to California

A federal appeals court on Friday ruled 2-1 that President Trump’s National Guard deployment to the Los Angeles area last year was unlawful.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit rejected Trump’s assertion that violent demonstrations in the city protesting his immigration crackdown justified him wresting control of the troops from Gov. Gavin Newsom (D).

Although Trump’s deployment has ended, the decision caps a year of consideration by the appeals court.

At an earlier stage of the case, the 9th Circuit sided with Trump . It’s now ruling against him after the Supreme Court similarly found Trump didn’t meet the legal requirements to unilaterally deploy the National Guard to Chicago.

“Defendants have not made either of the required threshold showings here. Thus, they have not carried their burden,” said U.S. Circuit Judge Jennifer Sung, an appointee of former President Biden.

Sung was joined on the panel by two Trump-nominated judges, Eric Miller and Mark Bennett. Miller also sided against Trump, while Bennett dissented.

Bennett said his colleagues shouldn’t have decided the case, as the administration wanted to dismiss the appeal and head back to the trial court to litigate the impact of the Supreme Court’s ruling.

“But the majority insists on pressing forward, relying primarily on outdated briefs prepared amid a shifting legal landscape,” Bennett wrote.

It means Friday’s decision will now bind future 9th Circuit panels if Trump tries to deploy the National Guard again in California.

Last year, Trump deployed the National Guard to various blue cities around the country — including Washington, Memphis and Portland, Ore. — to quell protests against his immigration crackdown.

In Los Angeles, the demonstrations devolved into violence at times, with reports of looting and some having thrown Molotov cocktails.

The president deployed the National Guard by invoking a law allowing him to federalize troops whenever there is a rebellion or when he cannot execute the law with regular forces.

The Supreme Court last year said Trump hadn’t met the criteria because “regular forces” likely refers to the U.S. military.

Trump’s National Guard deployment in the nation’s capital, which relies on a different legal authority, remains ongoing.