A federal judge ruled that the National Guard’s actions in Los Angeles violated an 1878 law prohibiting federal troops from engaging in civilian law enforcement.
“The evidence at trial established that Defendants systematically used armed soldiers (whose identity was often obscured by protective armor) and military vehicles to set up protective perimeters and traffic blockades, engage in crowd control, and otherwise demonstrate a military presence in and around Los Angeles,” U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer wrote. “In short, Defendants violated the Posse Comitatus Act.”
The Posse Comitatus Act prohibits the use of “any part of the Army, the Navy, the Marine Corps, the Air Force, or the Space Force as a posse comitatus” to enforce civilian laws.
“President Trump and [Defense] Secretary [Pete] Hegseth have stated their intention to call National Guard troops into federal service in other cities across the country–including Oakland and San Francisco, here in the Northern District of California–thus creating a national police force with the President as its chief,” the judge explained.
“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. Such conduct is a serious violation of the Posse Comitatus Act,” Breyer wrote.
At the end of July, the Pentagon withdrew more than 1,200 National Guard members. “We greatly appreciate the support of the more than 5,000 Guardsmen and Marines who mobilized to Los Angeles to defend Federal functions against the rampant lawlessness occurring in the city,” Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said at the time.
