--- title: Trump's Troop Deployment to L.A. Broke the Law, Judge Rules description: The judge's decision is the latest rebuke of Donald Trump’s expansive view of presidential power. canonical: https://time.com/7313929/trump-national-guard-la-los-angeles-marines-judge-ruling/ author: Nik Popli article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2025-09-02T16:04:46.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:50:08.627Z article:section: Politics og:title: Trump's Troop Deployment to L.A. Broke the Law, Judge Rules og:description: The judge's decision is the latest rebuke of Donald Trump’s expansive view of presidential power. og:url: https://time.com/7313929/trump-national-guard-la-los-angeles-marines-judge-ruling/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf9d9d4553ec1312d/6998c97666d4e345efcbcc9b/GettyImages-2219304699.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2923 og:image:height: 1644 og:image:alt: Protest Against Federal Immigration Raids In Los Angeles og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Trump's Troop Deployment to L.A. Broke the Law, Judge Rules twitter:description: The judge's decision is the latest rebuke of Donald Trump’s expansive view of presidential power. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf9d9d4553ec1312d/6998c97666d4e345efcbcc9b/GettyImages-2219304699.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Judge Rules Trump’s Deployment of Troops to Los Angeles Violated Federal Law > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. 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It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ## Video: Trump and California Officials Clash Over Deployment of National Guard and Marines to LA Protests [Watch (HLS stream): Trump and California Officials Clash Over Deployment of National Guard and Marines to LA Protests](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/28GTRXAF.m3u8) (2:18)  _Published 2025-06-10. Anti-ICE demonstrations are expected to spread to more cities this week after days of unrest in Los Angeles, with at least 30 new protests planned across the country in response to the Trump Administration’s recent immigration raids._  by [Nik Popli](https://time.com/author/nik-popli/)  ## Nik Popli Staff Writer Sep 2, 2025 4:04 PM UTC  Members of the California National Guards and U.S. Marines from 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division guard the entrance outside the Wilshire Federal Building in Los Angeles, Calif., Friday, June 13, 2025. Members of the California National Guards and U.S. Marines from 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division guard the entrance outside the Wilshire Federal Building in Los Angeles, Calif., Friday, June 13, 2025. Stephen Lam—San Francisco Chronicle/Getty Images  by [Nik Popli](https://time.com/author/nik-popli/)  ## Nik Popli Staff Writer Sep 2, 2025 4:04 PM UTC A federal judge ruled that President Donald Trump broke the law when he [sent thousands of National Guard members and Marines](https://time.com/7291978/los-angeles-immigration-protests-trump-national-guard-deployed-newsom-backlash/) into Los Angeles earlier this summer, concluding that the troops were used as a de facto police force in violation of a longstanding prohibition on domestic military enforcement. In a [52-page decision](https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cand.450934/gov.uscourts.cand.450934.176.0%5F1.pdf) issued Tuesday, Judge Charles R. Breyer of the Federal District Court in San Francisco said the Trump Administration had “systematically used armed soldiers” to perform law enforcement functions such as crowd control, traffic blockades and detentions, despite clear limits under the 1878 Posse Comitatus Act, which bars the use of the military for civilian policing without explicit approval from Congress. “The violations were not one-off acts by individual servicemembers but were rather the function of systematic and willful orders to troops to execute domestic law,” Judge Breyer wrote. He warned that the Administration’s approach suggested an effort to create “a national police force with the President as its chief.” The decision does not order the immediate withdrawal of the roughly 300 federalized Guard members who remain in Southern California, but it will sharply restrict their role to protecting federal property. Judge Breyer’s injunction, set to take effect Sept. 12, bars the Pentagon from directing National Guard soldiers or Marines in the Los Angeles area to make arrests, conduct searches, or perform crowd or riot control unless Congress authorizes such activities. The ruling marks a victory for Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who [sued](https://time.com/7292191/trump-newsom-national-guard-california-los-angeles-protests-legal-challenge/) to block the deployment and has accused Trump of militarizing city streets for political gain. “DONALD TRUMP LOSES AGAIN,” Newsom wrote in a [post on X](https://x.com/GavinNewsom/status/1962873063223202205), echoing the President’s social media style. “The courts agree — his militarization of our streets and use of the military against US citizens is ILLEGAL.” Trump ordered the deployment in early June after protests broke out in Los Angeles over immigration raids. He declared the demonstrations a form of “rebellion” in an [executive order](https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/06/department-of-defense-security-for-the-protection-of-department-of-homeland-security-functions/) and directed nearly 4,000 National Guard members and 700 Marines into the nation’s second-largest city, despite objections from Newsom and local leaders. City officials argued that the protests were largely peaceful and manageable, and that the presence of armed troops escalated tensions unnecessarily. Maj. Gen. Scott Sherman, who led the task force overseeing the deployment, testified that the troops had been trained on the limits of the Posse Comitatus Act, including prohibitions on patrols and riot control. But he said Pentagon officials instructed him that exceptions existed when federal property or personnel were involved. Judge Breyer rejected that reasoning outright, calling the Administration’s legal theory “incorrect” and its justifications “contrived.” The Justice Department, which defended the deployment, has signaled it will appeal the ruling. Lawyers for the Administration argued that the troops served only a “protective function” and were necessary to shield federal agents from demonstrators interfering with their duties. They also contended that presidents have broad inherent authority to dispatch military forces in defense of federal operations. **Read more:** [_Trump Has Deployed Troops At Home Like No Other President. Here is Where He Has Sent Them_](https://time.com/7308904/dc-national-guard-trump-troops/) Judge Breyer’s decision is the latest rebuke of Trump’s expansive view of presidential power, which he has invoked to impose tariffs, roll back regulations, and deploy federal forces in American cities. Since the deployment to Los Angeles, Trump has used his [authority over the District of Columbia](https://time.com/7308788/trump-washington-dc-national-guard/) to send National Guard troops into Washington, and has mused publicly about [doing the same in Chicago](https://time.com/7311770/chicago-trump-crime-stats/) and other Democratic-led cities. “There was no rebellion, nor was civilian law enforcement unable to respond to the protests,” Judge Breyer wrote. “This was intentional. Defendants instigated a months-long deployment of the National Guard and Marines to Los Angeles for the purpose of establishing a military presence there and enforcing federal law.” ## Transcript As of this afternoon, the Los Angeles Police Department is on tactical alert and in a state of partial mobilization. These designations are critical tools that allow us to expand our operational capacity to safeguard our communities and respond effectively to any unrest or unlawful activity. To the public, we fully support your right to peacefully protest. But let me be absolutely clear. Those who choose to incite violence, engage in vandalism or graffiti and or attack officers will be arrested. There is no tolerance for criminal activity under the guise of protest. And it makes me feel like our city is actually a test case. A test case for what happens when the federal government moves in and takes the authority away from the state, or away from local government. I don't think that our city should be used for an experiment to see what happens in the nation's second largest city. Well, maybe we can do this to other cities. That Donald Trump has created. The conditions you see on your TV tonight. He's exacerbated the conditions. He's, you know, lit the proverbial match. He's putting fuel on this fire ever since he announced he was taking over the National Guard in an illegal act and a moral act, an unconstitutional act. But Donald Trump needs to pull back. He needs to stand down. Donald Trump is inflaming these conditions. This is Donald Trump's problem right now. And if he can't solve it, we will. Mr. president, when is the last time you spoke with Governor Newsom? Um. A day ago. Called him up to tell him. Got to do a better job. He's done a bad job causing a lot of death and a lot of a lot of potential death. If we didn't send out the National Guard. And last night, we gave him a little additional help. Uh, you would have. Los Angeles would be burning right now. Los Angeles would be not a lot different than what you saw take place in California and Los Angeles just a little while ago. Mr. president, on those Marines, Governor Newsom has described them as political pawns. I'm curious for your reaction to that and what you see as the Marines role, and what are their rules of engagement? All I want is safety. I just want a safe area. 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