A legal challenge concerning President Trump’s decision to federalize thousands of National Guard troops and deploy them to Los Angeles is now before a federal appeals court in San Francisco.

The court convened on Tuesday to consider a request from the Trump Administration to prolong the suspension of a lower court’s order. The initial ruling mandated that Trump return control of the Guard to California Governor gavin Newsom.

The president dispatched over 4,000 Guard members to the city with the stated aim of safeguarding federal property and personnel amidst intense demonstrations against immigration enforcement. However,Newsom has characterized the deployment of the Guard,along with an additional 700 Marines,as an excessive and counterproductive measure.

Increased Immigration Enforcement

While the status of military units in Los angeles remains uncertain, immigration raids, which initially sparked protests in early June, have reportedly intensified.

“Operations are getting a little bit more faster, and they’re in and out.”

Vlad Carrasco,an advocate with the immigrant advocacy group chirla, participates in a “rapid response” initiative that responds to reported ICE raids. Carrasco notes that he previously could document ICE actions, but that changed in early June. Now, by the time he arrives, ICE agents are either departing or have already left the scene.

“they know it’ll likely cause a mobilization by the local community if they do stay there a long time,” Carrasco says.

Advocacy groups have shared videos depicting confrontations between ICE and other immigration enforcement officers and civilians. National Guard soldiers sometimes emerge from vans to form a protective barrier between agents and the public, but observers suggest that speed is the more common defensive strategy.

guillermo Torres of Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice,notes that agents sometimes operate in plainclothes,wear masks,or display insignia from other federal agencies,contributing to widespread fear.

“It makes you think of a totalitarian regime,” Torres says. “It makes you think of a country where people are kidnapped. not only kidnapped, they disappear.”

Federal Response and Local Policies

The Trump administration attributes the increased raids in L.A. to the city’s policies that limit cooperation between local law enforcement and federal immigration enforcement. Officials like “border czar” Tom Homan have asserted that “sanctuary” jurisdictions compel federal agents to conduct risky arrests in neighborhoods because they cannot take custody of targets from local jails when local law enforcement arrests them on non-immigration charges.

“These operations have been much more challenging because of los angeles’ and California’s sanctuary policies,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said last week.

Regarding agents wearing masks, acting director of ICE, Todd Lyons, says it is a necessary response to efforts to post agents’ photos and names online, leading to threats against them and their families.

“Is anyone upset with the fact that ICE officers’ families were labeled ‘terrorists’?”