Overview

• U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer concluded a focused three-day bench trial and is now deliberating whether the deployment violated the 1878 Posse Comitatus Act.
• Breyer repeatedly pressed the Justice Department on what legal limits prevent a standing federal force from carrying out domestic law-enforcement activities.
• The DOJ defended Trump’s action under Title 10 authority and a claimed protective-function exception, arguing the statute provides no civil remedy and that California lacks standing.
• California’s attorneys countered that troops performed active law-enforcement roles—detaining civilians, setting up roadblocks and reinforcing perimeters beyond mere protection.
• About 250 to 300 federalized Guard members remain in the Los Angeles area as the case awaits Breyer’s ruling and potential appeals to the Ninth Circuit or Supreme Court.