The ninth circuit court has maintained a prohibition on sending national guard in Portland, Oregon, after a recent legal decision.
The ninth circuit court of appeals ruled on this week that it would rehear the case concerning the president’s authority with an expanded group of eleven justices. The court also vacated a earlier decision from a smaller judicial group that had supported the federal government.
This legal directive represents the latest turn in a protracted court case over whether the administration has the legal right and justification to send state military units in the city. Approximately two hundred troops have been in limbo since late September when the mobilization attempt was started in response to ongoing demonstrations.
The administration has argued that federal officials at the ICE facility in the southern part of the city were facing threats, while city and state officials maintain that municipal police have control of the situation.
Contrary to descriptions of Portland as “war ravaged”, residents have been posting footage of lush hiking trails and a vibrant culinary culture, and planning activities such as an Emergency Naked Bike Ride against the “militarization of our city”.
The Tuesday ruling came after a federal judge in Portland issued two temporary restraining orders this month – one blocking the federalization of the state troops, and another stopping the deployment of any military personnel in the state, after attempts to circumvent the first order by mobilizing troops from California.
On the previous day, the appeals court had temporarily suspended the initial decision – permitting control of 200 Oregon national guard – but the subsequent injunction remained in place, preventing the actual deployment of the troops.
The latest ruling means the issue will be heard by the full court – with all decisions under review simultaneously – by a panel of 11 judges.
“This decision demonstrates that the truth matters and that the courts are working to ensure government responsibility. The constitution restricts the executive authority, and Oregon’s communities cannot be treated as a testing site for expansive government power,” said the legal representative in a official comment.
“The judicial body is sending a definite signal: the president cannot dispatch the military into US cities without cause. We will continue protecting Oregon’s laws, values, and autonomy as this case progresses and our fight continues in the courts.”
