In a bold move that conservatives have been demanding for years, the Department of Justice has finally launched a lawsuit against the radical sanctuary city policies embraced by Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and the city’s woke City Council. This legal battle marks a critical stand against local officials blatantly defying the Constitution and undermining federal immigration enforcement efforts spearheaded by President Trump.
The DOJ’s lawsuit, announced on June 30, 2025, strikes at the heart of LA’s sanctuary policies, which allow local law enforcement to refuse cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). These policies not only obstruct the enforcement of federal immigration law but also create dangerous loopholes that put American citizens at risk.
According to the DOJ filing, Los Angeles has deliberately chosen to “obstruct the federal government’s enforcement of federal immigration law” through these sanctuary ordinances, effectively shielding illegal immigrants from deportation. The lawsuit also highlights how LA’s refusal to cooperate “impede\[s] consultation and communication between federal, state, and local law enforcement officials,” crippling efforts to keep communities safe.
It’s no coincidence that Los Angeles doubled down on sanctuary policies right after President Trump’s election in November 2024—a clear rebuke of the president’s mandate to crack down on illegal immigration. The city’s woke leaders wasted no time in codifying sanctuary laws designed to frustrate federal immigration enforcement and defy the will of the American people, who overwhelmingly demand secure borders and the deportation of illegal aliens.
Attorney General Pam Bondi made the stakes crystal clear in her statement on the lawsuit. She called sanctuary policies “the driving cause of the violence, chaos, and attacks on law enforcement that Americans recently witnessed in Los Angeles.” Bondi emphasized, “Jurisdictions like Los Angeles that flout federal law by prioritizing illegal aliens over American citizens are undermining law enforcement at every level — it ends under President Trump.”
U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli for Los Angeles echoed these sentiments, declaring that the lawsuit holds the city accountable for “deliberately obstructing the enforcement of federal immigration law.” He cited the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause, which prohibits cities from picking and choosing which federal laws to enforce. “By assisting removable aliens in evading federal law enforcement, the city’s unlawful and discriminatory ordinance has contributed to a lawless and unsafe environment that this lawsuit will help end,” Essayli said.
He also pointed out the absurd double standard in LA’s law enforcement cooperation. While the FBI is welcomed into city buildings, ICE agents are barred entry—a discriminatory practice that defies logic and the law.
This lawsuit is more than just a legal battle; it’s a crucial step toward restoring law and order in a city that has become a symbol of lawlessness under the reign of woke politics. For too long, Los Angeles’s sanctuary policies have placed the interests of illegal immigrants above those of American citizens and law enforcement officers risking their lives daily.
President Trump’s administration is showing that no city, no matter how large or liberal, is above the law. This fight will send a clear message: sanctuary cities that choose to break federal law will face consequences—and American safety will come first.
