A federal district court decision today has bearing on a possible incursion into Chicago with military force. As we saw in Washington, these incursions give rise to violating constitutional constraints against unreasinable arrests and searches. one use of which is to grab unauthorized persons off the streets.

In Newsom v. Trump (N.D. Cal., Sept. 2, 2025), the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California ruled that President Trump and Secretary of Defense Hegseth violated the Posse Comitatus Act by using the National Guard and Marines for domestic law enforcement during immigration enforcement actions in Los Angeles. “In short, Defendants violated the Posse Comitatus Act.”

Although protests in the city included isolated violence, the Court found there was no rebellion and local police were capable of maintaining order. The President, the Court said, cannot create a “national police force” under his personal command. The ruling enjoined further deployments and reaffirmed that civilian authorities—not the military—must enforce the law. “Because there is an ongoing risk that Defendants will act unlawfully and thereby injure Plaintiffs … the Court ENJOINS Defendants from violating the Act.”