US judge tosses Trump administration’s challenge to Boston’s ‘sanctuary’ immigration law
By Nate Raymond
BOSTON, May 28 (Reuters) – A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit challenging U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration of a Boston regulation restricting police cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.
Boston-based U.S. District Judge Leo Sorokin ruled that the U.S. Department of Justice lacked legal standing to pursue the case; It’s one of about a dozen laws passed by so-called “sanctuary jurisdictions” run by Democrats.
The lawsuit was filed in September against the city and Democratic Mayor Michelle Wu and challenges the Boston Trust Act, a law first passed in 2014. The city council reaffirmed its support for the measure in December 2024 as Trump prepares to return to office.
The law prohibits the Boston Police Department and other city officials from cooperating with federal authorities, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, to detain immigrants for possible deportation or enforce civil immigration enforcement, including sharing their personal information.
The Justice Department argued that these provisions violate the U.S. Constitution, hinder federal immigration enforcement, and are preempted by federal immigration law.
But Sorokin, who was appointed by Democratic President Barack Obama, said the administration had failed to show that it had legal standing to challenge the measure and that any ruling in its favor would offset the harms the federal government claims it suffered.
He said that even if the city blocks the law, Boston police cannot help ICE the way the Justice Department wants because of a 2017 ruling by Massachusetts’ highest court during Trump’s first term that barred law enforcement in the state from detaining noncitizens solely on the basis of a federal civil immigration detainee.
“There is no source of authority in Massachusetts that authorizes Boston police officers to do what the United States wants them to do,” Sorokin wrote.
The Justice Department did not respond to a request for comment.
In his ruling, the Justice Department has so far lost all similar lawsuits filed against cities and states with “sanctuary” policies; judges threw out four other cases in Colorado, Illinois and New York.
“Today’s decision is a victory for the rule of law and local governments across the country,” Jill Habig, whose group the Public Rights Project helped defend Boston against the lawsuit, said in a statement. he said.
(Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
