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() A federal judge partially blocked National Guard troops from deploying in Illinois, ruling President Donald Trump did not meet the requirements to federalize troops in Chicago.
The partial restraining order from U.S. District Judge April Perry is temporary and will remain in effect for two weeks, until Oct. 23. Perry said there was “no credible evidence” of rebellion and that deploying troops could “only add fuel to the fire.”
The decision comes amid ongoing protests at a federal immigration processing facility in the suburb of Broadview, Illinois. In her ruling, Perry cited four instances that cast doubt on the Department of Homeland Security’s account of events in Broadview, where police say the protests unlike in weeks past have remained small and mostly peaceful.
However, officials said 500 National Guardsmen have already been deployed for 60 days to protect federal officers and property, including the Broadview facility. The future is unclear for those troops, who are stationed at a nearby Army Reserve base.
“They’re welcome to stay at our hotels if they pay the hotel rate. They’re welcome to eat at our restaurants like any other American citizen,” said Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul. “Our decision is one on their behalf as well, that they should not be turned against the very citizens that they volunteered to protect.”
Raoul said the state of Illinois was not in the business of armed removal of the National Guard.
The judge is expected to issue her full written opinion on Friday, and the Justice Department has already said it would appeal the ruling. Illinois officials said they wanted the order to make clear that any state’s National Guard is covered, and to prevent a repeat of Portland, Oregon, where California troops were sent.
A three-judge panel in Portland heard arguments Thursday but did not set a timeline for a decision. Two of the judges, appointed by Trump, questioned whether the evidence was sufficient to justify federalizing the National Guard, noting that Trump relied on June reports to support actions taken in September.
The two appeared inclined to lift the current temporary restraining order blocking troop deployments to Oregon. Legal analysts told a decision could come as early as this weekend, with both cases likely to have a defining impact on how far a president can go in using the National Guard on U.S. soil.