‘Huge victory’ in Portland as judge’s final order bars Trump from sending national guard | Portland

A federal judge in Oregon blocked Donald Trump from sending National Guard troops to Portland on Friday, ruling that there was no evidence of widespread violence that would justify federal intervention.

US district court judge Karin Immergut, appointed by Trump, made her final decision on the case on Friday. It found that protests near Portland’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility “were predominantly peaceful, with only isolated and occasional incidents of relatively low-level violence.”

Earlier this week, Immergut banned the Trump administration from sending the national guard to Portland until at least Friday, saying he “found no credible evidence” that protests in the city had gotten out of control before the president federalized the troops earlier this fall.

Friday’s ruling concluded that most of the altercations occurred between protesters and counterprotesters, rather than between protesters and federal agents. Immergut also acknowledged that while he “does not have the authority to order President Trump to perform official duties,” the injunction only prevents defense secretary Pete Hegseth and homeland security secretary Kristi Noem from deploying members of the national guard to Oregon.

It’s the latest development in weeks of legal headwinds in Portland, Chicago and other U.S. cities as the Trump administration begins federalizing and deploying national guards on city streets to quell protests.

The ICE facility in Southwest Portland has been the scene of ongoing protests since June, when Portland police declared a riot. The city of Portland and the state of Oregon sued the Trump administration in September after the president said he had ordered the Department of Defense to federalize and deploy the Oregon National Guard.

Immergut had previously issued a temporary restraining order banning the deployment of the national guard to Oregon, and the Trump administration appealed that decision.

The judge heard three days of witness testimony from law enforcement and officials describing conditions around the ICE facility. Oregon attorney general Dan Rayfield called Friday’s ruling a “major victory.”

“The courts are holding this administration accountable to the truth and the rule of law,” Rayfield said. “From the beginning, this case has been about ensuring that facts, not political whims, guide how the law is applied. Today’s decision upholds that principle.”

The Trump administration is expected to appeal the decision.