California Urges Appeals Court to Block Use of National Guard

Members of the California National Guard stand guard in front of the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building during the 'No Kings' protest in Los Angeles on June 14.

Photographer: Keith Birmingham/Pasadena Star-News/Getty Images

California urged a federal appeals court to leave in place for now a lower court’s order that would limit the Trump administration’s use of National Guard troops in Los Angeles to respond to protests over the president’s immigration raids.

Allowing the administration to continue directing troops in the city, even temporarily, would “escalate tensions and exacerbate the risk of violence,” lawyers for the state said in a court filing Sunday. They argued that the administration’s actions were unlawful, and the deployment of the National Guard never should have happened without the approval of Governor Gavin Newsom.