Los Angeles Mayor Bass joins ACLU suit, calling Trump’s immigration raids unconstitutional and vowing to fight federal enforcement.

LA Challenges Immigration Enforcement in Court

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass announced Tuesday that the city is joining a high-profile lawsuit aiming to halt President Donald Trump’s aggressive immigration enforcement measures. The legal challenge, spearheaded by the ACLU of California and non-profit Public Counsel, contends that the federal government’s raids in the Los Angeles region are unconstitutional and motivated by political agenda rather than public safety.

“The City of Los Angeles, along with the County, cities, organizations and Angelenos across L.A., is taking the Administration to court to stop its clear violation of the United States Constitution and federal law,” Bass said in a press release. She accused the Trump administration of using Los Angeles as a “test case” for how far it can push executive power, and promised, “We will not be intimidated—we are making Los Angeles the example of how people who believe in American values will stand together and stand united.”

The city’s intervention comes amid reports of federal agents and military vehicles patrolling neighborhoods such as MacArthur Park, an area often filled with children and families. City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto stated that the lawsuit sends a message to the Trump administration that LA will not tolerate raids becoming “standard operating procedure.” She described the federal deployment as “thousands of armed immigration agents, many of whom lack visible identification, and military troops… conducting unconstitutional raids, roundups and anonymous detentions, sowing fear and chaos among our residents.”

Advocates and Federal Officials Clash Over Allegations

The class-action suit, filed as “Vasquez Perdomo v. Noem,” demands an immediate end to what immigrant advocates say are unlawful raids targeting communities of color and detaining migrants in inhumane, overcrowded conditions. The ACLU and Public Counsel allege that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is keeping migrants without access to food, beds, or legal representation, and call for improved conditions and due process for all detainees.

Homeland Security officials have denied the claims, labeling accusations of racial profiling as “disgusting and categorically false.” The department maintains that all operations follow federal law and constitutional protections, and disputes any suggestion of systemic abuse or discrimination.

Bass and other elected officials have decried the presence of military-style vehicles and armed troops on city streets, insisting they will “use every resource available” to stop what they characterize as “reckless raids.” The mayor’s office described the recent federal actions as designed solely to “bring fear to Los Angeles.”

As the legal battle intensifies, LA’s leaders and immigrant advocates continue to challenge the Trump administration’s tactics, emphasizing the stakes for constitutional rights and community trust. The outcome of the lawsuit could have lasting implications for federal immigration enforcement not only in Los Angeles, but nationwide.