Office of the
Illinois Attorney General
Kwame Raoul

Chicago – Attorney General Kwame Raoul today filed an amicus brief in support of the District of Columbia (D.C.) Attorney General Brian Schwalb’s lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s unlawful deployment of National Guard troops to D.C. Raoul and 21 attorneys general assert in the brief that the deployment of National Guard service members without the consent of the district is unlawful, unconstitutional and undemocratic. 

“The unlawful deployment of National Guard servicemembers in the District of Columbia, Los Angeles, Chicago, or any other American city, to perform routine law enforcement functions should concern everyone,” Raoul said. “Domestic use of the military has long been recognized as antithetical to American values, and the use of our nation’s military against our residents is an alarming sign that authoritarianism is here. National Guard service members should not be used as political pawns or put in situations they have not been trained for.” 

While California and D.C. were the first places subjected to unlawful federalized deployments, President Trump has made clear that this is just the beginning of the military occupying American cities. Raoul and the coalition urge the court to grant a preliminary injunction enjoining this unlawful conduct. 

In the brief, the attorneys general explain that the activation of the National Guard in California serves as a warning of the harm caused by a continuous military presence in the state. During this time, the troops’ presence has stoked fear among Californians, who have chosen to stay home, failed to report for work, and avoided commercial areas where the military is deployed. 

Raoul and the attorneys general said in the brief that the use of federalized National Guard troops has damaged trust between local law enforcement and the community, as it upsets the careful balance between civilian and military authority set forth in the Constitution and also infringes on the police powers reserved to states and localities. Additionally, service members are not prepared to engage in civilian law enforcement, lacking training in criminal procedure, civil rights, criminal investigation and de-escalation, which introduces complications and dangers to both the public and the troops’ engagement. Finally, the deployments divert Guardsmen from essential state functions, like natural disaster and security responses.  

Joining Attorney General Raoul in filing the brief are the attorneys general of California, Maryland, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin.