The order comes after California sued. The state said the troops sent to Los Angeles over the summer were violating a law that prohibits military enforcement of domestic laws. Lawyers for the Republican administration have argued the Posse Comitatus Act doesn’t apply because the troops were protecting federal officers, not enforcing laws. They say the troops were mobilized under an authority that allows the president to deploy them.
The decision comes as Trump has discussed National Guard deployments in Democratic-led cities like Chicago, Baltimore and New York. He has already deployed the Guard as part of his unprecedented law enforcement takeover in Washington, where he has direct legal control.
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This story has been corrected to show the judge is in San Francisco, not Washington.