Virginia judge pauses Spanberger's restrictions on ICE cooperation

Key Points:

• A federal judge blocked a key part of Virginia’s new law restricting local cooperation with federal immigration authorities, pausing the requirement for sheriffs to modify or end their 287(g) agreements by a Tuesday deadline.
• Judge Robert Payne ruled the law likely violates the U.S. Constitution’s Contracts Clause by substantially impairing existing contracts between the federal government and Virginia localities, and improperly attempts to regulate federal law enforcement conduct.
• Virginia Republicans criticized the law, arguing it wastes taxpayer money and interferes with federal immigration enforcement, with Rep. Ben Cline proposing federal legislation to mandate local cooperation with ICE as a condition for federal grants.
• A similar legal battle is unfolding in Maryland, where a law limiting local cooperation with ICE has prompted a lawsuit by 17 of 24 county sheriffs, challenging the state’s restrictions on immigration enforcement collaboration.
• Maryland’s law, supported by Democrats, aims to prevent local jails from being used for immigration enforcement without a court order, highlighting a regional conflict over immigration policy between state governments and local law enforcement.