Immigration group and Washington residents file complaint against Trump for illegal arrests – JURIST
National immigration organization, CASA, and four Washington, D.C., residents filed a complaint against US President Donald Trump’s administration on Thursday, claiming that multiple federal officials have engaged in illegal deportations of immigrants since August.
The complaint comes after Trump declared a crime emergency in Washington, D.C., which placed local police under federal control and deployed the National Guard in the city’s streets in an attempt to “clean up” the nation’s capital. The White House has stated that over 2,000 people have been arrested since August 7. A substantial amount of these arrests have been for immigration-related offenses.
Plaintiffs, represented by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and other non-profit groups and law firms, brought the suit as a class action for individuals who have experienced some form of illegal arrests since August 2025. The ACLU claimed that:
Over the past month and a half, plain-clothed, masked, and armed federal agents have flooded the streets of the nation’s capital, indiscriminately arresting without warrants and without probable cause District residents whom the agents perceive to be Latino. Federal agents systematically arrest individuals in these immigration sweeps without a warrant and without any individualized assessment that they are in the United States unlawfully and/or that they are likely to escape before a warrant can be obtained.
Plaintiffs challenge the administration’s policy of detaining people without a warrant or probable cause of unlawful immigration and flight risk. Afflicted residents seek a court ruling to prevent the government from conducting future unlawful arrests.
In continuance of this complaint, there will be a virtual press conference on September 26, where those who have experienced similar allegedly illegal arrests can speak about their experiences.
