Judge bars 'warrantless' immigration enforcement raids at churches to protect 'religious freedom'

Source: Law & Crime

Feb 14th, 2026, 10:26 am


The Trump administration has been barred from carrying out "warrantless" immigration enforcement operations in or "within 100 feet of the entrance" to various churches across the country.

In a 62-page memorandum and order, U.S. District Judge F. Dennis Saylor, a George W. Bush appointee, rejected the need for such efforts in all but the most limited of cases in the name of religious freedom.

"The prospect that a street-level law-enforcement agent—acting without a judicial warrant and with little or no supervisory control—could conduct a raid during a church service, or lie in wait to interrogate or seize congregants as they seek to enter a church, is profoundly troubling," the judge writes. "Indeed, according to the new policy, agents could conduct a raid, with weapons drawn, at any type of church proceeding—including a regular Sunday service, a wedding, a baptism, a christening, or a funeral—subject only to the exercise of their 'discretion' and 'common sense.'"

The 44-page lawsuit was filed in July 2025 against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) by an ecumenical coalition of churches, alleging violations of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), the First Amendment, and the Administrative Procedure Act (APA).

Read more: https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/the-court-can-conceive-of-no-circumstance-judge-bars-warrantless-immigration-enforcement-raids-at-churches-to-protect-religious-freedom/