Judge’s ruling allows ICE to make arrests near churches

A federal judge on Friday rejected a lawsuit by churches against the new Trump policy allowing immigration officers to make arrests near churches, saying the religious organizations can’t show they suffered enough harm to be able to sue.

U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich, a Trump appointee to the bench, said claims about church attendance or fears of harassment by immigration officers were too speculative.

That upholds — for now — Homeland Security’s revocation of a Biden-era policy severely limiting immigration enforcement at or near so-called “sensitive locations” such as churches, schools, hospitals, day cares, community organizations and other places the community might gather.

Churches and schools have been a major focus of immigration activists, with religious groups saying they’ve seen empty pews in the wake of the Trump changes.

But the judge said that’s just as likely to be Mr. Trump’s broader mass deportation goals as it is the specific revocation of the sensitive locations policy.

“At least on the existing record, the plaintiffs have not presented ’substantial evidence’ that the policy rescission — as opposed to the administration’s broader immigration crackdown — has caused the widespread congregant absences from religious services,” the judge ruled.

Judge Friedrich did not reach the substance or legality of the new Trump policy, ruling only that the groups lacked “standing” to sue.