Historic Trial Over Military Use in Deportation Efforts: Legal Showdown in Los Angeles

The trial over the Trump administration's deployment of National Guard troops in Los Angeles begins on Monday, scrutinizing a major departure from traditional norms against military enforcement on American soil. The non-jury trial before Judge Charles Breyer in San Francisco seeks to determine whether this action violated a 19th-century law barring military involvement in civilian law enforcement.

The issue arose from unrest following mass immigration raids, with the government maintaining that troops were protecting federal property and ICE agents. California's Attorney General, Rob Bonta, criticized the deployment as political theater without precedent in American history, warning that it was a dangerous move aimed at public intimidation.

The outcome of the trial could limit future military use in civilian settings, impacting President Trump's plans for troop deployment elsewhere. California asserts that the deployment in Los Angeles violated federal law and state sovereignty, seeking to return control of National Guard troops to state authority and to declare the federal actions illegal.

(With inputs from agencies.)