Trump-appointed judge torpedoes DOJ lawsuit against Minnesota's sanctuary immigration rules

A Trump-appointed judge dealt nan Trump management a awesome setback Monday, tossing retired its suit against Minnesota's sanctuary migration policies and ruling nan authorities cannot beryllium compelled to assistance national migration enforcement.

The conflict centered connected whether nan Trump management tin usage nan Supremacy Clause to sound down Minnesota's sanctuary laws, which see policies that barroom section officials from holding immigrants solely connected ICE detainers, restrict information successful national migration enforcement and limit nan sharing of driver's licence and immigration-related information pinch ICE.

The Justice Department argued Minnesota's restrictions illegally inhibit ICE, but Chief U.S. District Judge Eric Tostrud rejected that argument, ruling states person nan law authority to determine really their ain officials participate successful migration enforcement.

In a 56-page opinion, Tostrud dismissed each declare brought by nan Justice Department against Minnesota, Minneapolis, St. Paul and Hennepin County, concluding nan challenged laws modulate only authorities and section officials, not nan national government.

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Alberto Castaneda-Mondragon successful an flat connected Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026, successful St. Paul. Homeland Security said Castaneda-Mondragon wounded himself trying to fly national authorities. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

"They do not bid nan national authorities aliases its contractors to act. They do not forbid nan national authorities aliases its contractors from acting. They do not power really nan national authorities aliases its contractors undertake their work," Tostrud wrote. "Rather, they modulate really authorities and section officials execute their duties."

The ruling marks a important setback for nan administration's broader effort to block sanctuary policies crossed nan state by arguing they unlawfully interfere pinch national migration enforcement.

But Eric Wessan, an lawyer successful nan Iowa Solicitor General's Office, said he believed Tostrud's ruling conflicts pinch an earlier Eighth Circuit determination that he says gives nan national authorities stronger grounds to situation authorities laws that interfere pinch national migration enforcement.

"States crossed nan state person passed laws making authorities migration crimes. The Eighth Circuit (which includes Minnesota) recovered 1 of those laws obstructed national migration enforcement, and truthful it was preempted," Wessan told Fox News Digital. "Judge Tostrud cited that sentiment to explicate that preemption is narrow. I deliberation that his sentiment is difficult to quadrate pinch nan binding precedent."

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People are approached by a national supplier brandishing a firearm, for pursuing supplier vehicles, connected Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026, successful Minneapolis, Minn. (Ryan Murphy/AP)

The Justice Department argued Minnesota's laws and section ordinances conflict pinch national migration statutes by restricting section officers from honoring ICE detainers, limiting accusation sharing pinch national authorities and preventing section officials from participating successful migration enforcement.

But Tostrud concluded that accepting nan administration's declare would create a law problem nether nan Tenth Amendment's anti-commandeering doctrine.

The judge emphasized that while Congress possesses wide authority complete immigration, it cannot compel states to usage their ain unit and resources to transportation retired national regulatory programs.

"The framers explicitly chose a Constitution that confers upon Congress nan powerfulness to modulate individuals, not States," nan sentiment states, adding that nan national authorities "may not bid nan States' officers...to administer aliases enforce a national regulatory program."

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Wessan agreed that states mostly cannot beryllium required to assistance nan national authorities but based on nan harder ineligible mobility is whether states tin prohibit voluntary cooperation.

"States are not required to thief nan national authorities enforce national migration law," he said. "Whether States tin prohibition practice erstwhile definite actors (states aliases municipalities want to) is simply a harder question, and astir apt depends connected nan circumstantial authorities and authorities laws."

Tostrud besides rejected 1 of nan administration's cardinal arguments — that Minnesota's refusal to cooperate pinch ICE amounts to obstruction of national migration enforcement.

"Trefusing to thief is not nan aforesaid arsenic impeding," Tostrud wrote.

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An ICE supplier holds a taser arsenic they guidelines watch aft 1 of their vehicles sewage a level tyre connected Penn Avenue connected Feb. 5, 2026, successful Minneapolis, Minn. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

Wessan based on nan statement complete that favoritism distracts from nan larger migration crisis.

"The state is facing an migration crisis," he said. "Rather than figuring retired nan good statement betwixt impeding and refusing to help, Minnesota should admit nan national government's willingness to thief pinch nan forbidden migration crisis—and nan waste, fraud, and maltreatment that accompanies it."

Minnesota leaders person defended nan state's sanctuary-style policies, arguing they promote immigrants successful nan state illegally to cooperate pinch section rule enforcement by assuring them that reporting crimes aliases serving arsenic witnesses will not automatically expose them to migration enforcement.

The ineligible conflict besides follows months of heightened migration enforcement successful Minnesota, wherever nan Trump management launched Operation Metro Surge, a large-scale ICE inaugural that drew nationalist attention, sparked protests and importantly accrued nan national rule enforcement beingness crossed nan state.

The cognition intensified aft 2 U.S. citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, were changeable and killed by national agents conscionable weeks isolated successful January. Their deaths heightened scrutiny of Minnesota's migration policies and prompted President Donald Trump to region then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem from overseeing nan operation, pinch separator czar Tom Homan taking complete nan effort.

After taking over, Homan many times based on that large-scale ICE operations would go little basal if authorities and section officials cooperated pinch national migration authorities. Homan said that his "main attraction now is drawdown," but stressed that reducing nan national beingness would require greater practice from Minnesota officials.

"Cooperation pinch section authorities, particularly jails and prisons, will springiness national agents amended entree to group successful nan United States illegally. This would past lead to less national rule enforcement [agents] connected Minnesota streets," Homan said.

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Monday's ruling comes arsenic nan Trump management continues to prosecute akin lawsuits challenging sanctuary policies successful respective different states.

Fox News Digital reached retired to nan White House and nan Justice Department for comment.