DOJ accuses Maryland of 'active and deliberate effort' to prevent deportations of illegal immigrants: lawsuit

The Department of Justice sued Maryland over its sanctuary policies, accusing the state of engaging in an "active and deliberate effort" to obstruct federal immigration enforcement.

The lawsuit, filed Thursday in Maryland federal court, comes after the U.S. attorney general in February 2025 ordered the DOJ's civil division to identify state and local policies that provide sanctuary to illegal migrants. Since then, 20 other lawsuits have been brought, including against Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois and New York.

The DOJ's suit against Maryland argues that the state's Community Trust Act, passed this year, "jeopardizes the public safety for all Americans" by purposely thwarting immigration-related arrests and deportations.

"Federal immigration officers merely enforce the laws that our Nation’s elected representatives in Congress passed, reflecting the will of We the People," Associate U.S. Attorney General Stanley Woodward said in a statement. "Today’s suit proves that this Department will never stand for such lawless action from blue state leaders."

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ICE agents walk down a street during a multi-agency targeted enforcement operation in Chicago, Illinois, on Jan. 26, 2025. (Christopher Dilts/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The lawsuit also said that Maryland's law violates the supremacy clause of the Constitution, which says state laws must be compliant with federal law.

DOJ lawyers argued that the Community Trust Act has led to local authorities not cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other immigration officers.

They pointed to an incident on May 29, 2026, when a warden of a Worcester County Jail told a detention and deportation officer that as a result of the Community Trust Act, his facility "would no longer honor ICE detainers, release individuals to ICE custody, or notify ICE when individuals are in custody and ready for release."

"The facility denied a scheduled ICE pickup that morning and did not release the individual in question to ICE custody," DOJ lawyers wrote.

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The text of the law says Maryland correctional facilities may not transfer individuals into federal custody without a "valid judicial warrant."

The DOJ argued that immigration law allows arrests through administrative warrants, not just through warrants signed by a judge.

Most local law enforcement officers in Maryland agree with the federal government's assessment of the Community Trust Act.

Wes Moore attends a conversation about his new book "Courage Will Save Us" at 92NY on June 9, 2026, in New York City. (Dominik Bindl/Getty Images)

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In late May, 17 of Maryland's 24 sheriffs sued the state, saying the law "interferes with the ability of sheriffs and local detention centers to coordinate with [ICE] regarding individuals in custody who may pose threats to public safety."

The sheriffs claimed in a statement that Gov. Wes Moore, who was named in the lawsuit, told them during a phone call that he "was aware of the unintended public safety consequences this legislation could have on our communities."

Moore did not sign the Community Trust Act, but under Maryland law, a bill approved by both chambers becomes law if the governor does not sign or veto it within 10 days.

Moore's office confirmed to Fox News Digital that this phone call took place and that Moore "explained his rationale for letting the bill go into law without his signature."

Anthony Brown, attorney general of Maryland, speaks during a press conference at Digital Harbor on Oct. 20, 2025. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

Moore previously said that despite the implementation challenges, the Community Trust Act keeps "local law enforcement focused on the work that has helped drive Maryland’s historic reductions in violent crime."

A representative from Moore's office also told Fox News Digital that the Community Trust Act allows local authorities to coordinate with federal immigration officers "when it comes to people convicted of serious crimes."

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Moore's office declined to comment on the DOJ lawsuit but offered a statement attacking President Donald Trump's approach to immigration enforcement.

"Maryland will work with the federal government when that coordination makes our people safer – but we will not let Donald Trump’s untrained, unqualified, and unaccountable ICE agents deputize our law enforcement officers to do immigration work," the statement read.

The office of Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown — who was named in both the federal lawsuit and the complaint filed by the collection of sheriffs — declined to comment.

Fox News Digital reached out to the DOJ, the White House and the Department of Homeland Security for comment.