Courts in two states will hear arguments Monday on the legality of the deployment of the National Guard, including the use of troops on the streets of Memphis, Tennessee, and from West Virginia as part of President Donald Trump’s enforcement efforts in the nation’s capital.
Trump’s push to send the military into Democratic-run cities has unleashed a whirlwind of lawsuits and overlapping court rulings.
Here’s what to know about the latest legal efforts on the issue:
Tennessee court addresses Guard deployment in Memphis
Monday’s hearing on the Memphis deployment is before Davidson County Chancellor Patricia Head Moskal in Nashville.
Democratic state and county officials contend in a lawsuit that Republican Gov. Bill Lee cannot deploy the Tennessee National Guard for civil unrest unless there is rebellion or invasion, and even then, it would require action by state lawmakers.
Since their arrival on Oct. 10, National Guard troops have been patrolling neighborhoods and commercial areas of Memphis, including near the iconic Pyramid in downtown, wearing fatigues and protective vests that say “military police.” Officials have said Guard members, who are armed, have no arrest power.
Trump announced in September that the National Guard would accompany authorities from a slew of federal agencies as part of the so-called Memphis Safe Task Force.
Democratic Mayor Paul Young, who is not involved in the lawsuit, said he never requested that the Guard come to Memphis. But after Trump made the announcement and Lee agreed, Young and others have said they wanted the task force to focus on targeting violent offenders.
Since they arrived Sept. 29, the federal agencies have made more than 1,500 arrests and issued thousands of traffic citations, according to statistics provided by the U.S. Marshals Service. Arrests have been made on charges ranging from homicides and drug and weapons violations to immigration warrants. Lee has said the National Guard would “play a critical support role” for local law enforcement.
Judge considers West Virginia deployment in D.C.
West Virginia is among several states that sent National Guard members to Washington, D.C., to support Trump’s crime-fighting efforts. Last month a West Virginia judge asked attorneys for the state to address whether Gov. Patrick Morrisey’s deployment of up to 300 Guard members to the nation’s capital in August was legal.
A civic organization called the West Virginia Citizen Action Group says in a lawsuit that Morrisey exceeded his authority. Under state law, the group argues, the governor may deploy the National Guard out of state only for certain purposes, such as responding to a natural disaster or another state’s emergency request.
Morrisey’s office has argued the deployment was authorized under federal law.
Kanawha County Circuit Judge Richard Lindsay in Charleston heard initial arguments in the case Oct. 24. The civic group claimed it was harmed by the deployment by being forced to refocus its resources away from government accountability and transparency.
The state attorney general’s office sought to reject the case, saying the group has not been harmed and lacked standing to challenge Morrisey’s decision. Lindsay rescheduled the hearing and ordered the state to focus on whether what Morrisey did was lawful.
The West Virginia National Guard has said its deployment could last until the end of November.
While Trump issued an executive order in August declaring a crime emergency in the nation’s capital, the U.S. Justice Department says violent crime there is at a 30-year low.
Within a month, more than 2,300 Guard troops from eight states and the district were patrolling under the Army secretary’s command. Trump also deployed hundreds of federal agents to assist them.
Separately, a federal judge heard arguments Oct. 24 on District of Columbia Attorney General Brian Schwalb ’s request for an order that would remove National Guard members from Washington streets. U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb, an appointee of former President Joe Biden, did not rule from the bench.
