Appeals court upholds block on immigration arrests at certain houses of worship

A federal appeals court has maintained a block on a Department of Homeland Security policy that permitted immigration arrests at specific houses of worship. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit unanimously decided to keep a district court's preliminary injunction in place while the case proceeds.

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is having a chilling effect on their congregations and already has caused declines in attendance among members of [Cooperative Baptist Fellowship] and the Sikh Plaintiffs.

The injunction, initially issued last year, prevents the Trump administration from enforcing its policy against congregations from the Quaker, Sikh, and Cooperative Baptist Fellowship traditions. In the court's written decision, Judge Barbara Milano Keenan stated that the houses of worship successfully demonstrated that the DHS policy significantly burdens their religious freedom.

Keenan noted that the policy has created a "chilling effect on their congregations" and has already led to decreased attendance among members of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and Sikh plaintiffs. This decline in attendance, coupled with the heightened threat of immigration enforcement at these religious sites, "has already imposed a substantial burden on the ability of all the plaintiffs to express their religion through communal worship," the judge wrote.

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already has imposed a substantial burden on the ability of all the plaintiffs to express their religion through communal worship.

The dispute originated early in President Trump's second administration when DHS reversed a previous policy that prohibited immigration enforcement actions at or near sensitive locations like places of worship. The new guidance allowed immigration officers discretion in conducting arrests in these areas. The plaintiffs, including the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, Gurdwara Sahib West Sacramento, and several Quaker Meetings, argued that the policy violates the Religious Freedom Restoration Act and the First Amendment by discouraging immigrants from attending services.

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criminals will no longer be able to hide in America's schools and churches to avoid arrest.