Federal Judge Rejects Minnesota’s Bid to Halt ‘Operation Metro Surge’

Overview

• The ruling by U.S. District Judge Katherine Menendez denied a preliminary injunction sought by Minnesota and the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul to stop the large-scale immigration operation.
• Plaintiffs argued the surge coerces dismantling local non-cooperation policies and diverts resources, invoking the Tenth Amendment’s anti-commandeering doctrine and an equal-sovereignty claim.
• Menendez held that extending anti-commandeering to an executive law-enforcement deployment would be unprecedented and cited United States v. Texas in rejecting standing based on downstream fiscal impacts.
• The court found the equal-sovereignty theory ill-suited because the case concerns allocation of federal agents rather than a statute burdening specific states.
• While noting allegations of racial profiling, excessive force, and multiple fatal encounters, the judge balanced those harms against federal enforcement interests and referenced Tincher v. Noem, as officials traded reactions with Mayor Jacob Frey voicing disappointment and Attorney General Pam Bondi praising the decision.