Judge denies injunction to pause Operation Metro Surge

MINNEAPOLIS — A federal judge denied a preliminary injunction to pause the Department of Homeland Security’s Operation Metro Surge in the Twin Cities.

Attorney General Keith Ellison and the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul pushed against DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and other top officials in the department to stop the surge. In the lawsuit, officials originally sought a temporary restraining order, but the court converted the matter into a preliminary injunction.

Attorneys for Minnesota, Minneapolis and St. Paul claimed the surge is violating the state’s Tenth Amendment rights and impacting residents’ access to health care, education and emergency services. Representatives from the U.S. Attorney’s Office maintained the surge is necessary due to sanctuary policies, and stopping the surge would impede DHS's efforts to enforce federal immigration law.

Judge Kate Menendez, in an order dated Saturday, Jan. 31, denied the injunction largely on the grounds that the court could not grant the relief requested, and plaintiffs would not likely succeed arguing their case in higher courts.

“Plaintiffs have made a strong showing that Operation Metro Surge has had, and will likely continue to have, profound and even heartbreaking, consequences on the State of Minnesota, the Twin Cities and Minnesotans,” Menendez wrote.

“It would be difficult to overstate the effect this operation is having on the citizens of Minnesota, and the court must acknowledge that reality here.”

Menendez stated that a ruling halting the operation would not likely hold up in appeals, citing her previously granted injunction that curtailed how ICE and other DHS agents interact with protesters and observers, which was reversed in the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.

“The Eighth Circuit has recently reiterated that entry of an injunction barring the federal government from enforcing federal law imposes significant harm on the government,” she said.

In a news release, Ellison stated while he was disappointed in the ruling, he will continue forward with the lawsuit.

“We will continue to protect Minnesotans and raise the critical legal and constitutional issues at stake, and we will continue to be unrelenting in doing so," he stated.

“We know that these 3,000 immigration agents are here to intimidate Minnesota and bend the state to the federal government’s will. That is unconstitutional under the Tenth Amendment and the principle of equal sovereignty. We’re not letting up in defending our state's constitutional powers.”

Attorney General Pam Bondi wrote on social media that Menendez’s ruling was a “HUGE legal win in Minnesota.”

“Neither sanctuary policies nor meritless litigation will stop the Trump Administration from enforcing federal law in Minnesota,” she stated.