The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to allow President Trump to deploy hundreds of National Guard troops in the Chicago area over the objection of Illinois officials, casting doubt on the viability of similar deployments in other American cities.
The justices’ order is preliminary, but it blocks the Trump administration for now from ordering the state-based military force to the Chicago area, where an immigration crackdown led to thousands of arrests and confrontations between residents and federal agents.
In its temporary ruling against the administration, the court refused to grant the president broad discretion to deploy the military in U.S. cities. It represented a rare departure from recent cases, in which the conservative majority has overwhelmingly sided with Mr. Trump in preliminary tests of presidential power.
At this stage in the litigation, the court said the Trump administration had not shown that the statute at issue “permits the president to federalize the Guard in the exercise of inherent authority to protect federal personnel and property in Illinois.”
Three conservative justices — Clarence Thomas, Samuel A. Alito Jr. and Neil M. Gorsuch — noted their dissents.
Mr. Trump had also in recent months ordered the National Guard to Portland, Ore.; Los Angeles; and Washington, D.C., over the objections of state and local leaders. The president’s efforts to use troops for domestic policing have prompted legal challenges accusing the Trump administration of exceeding its authority and infringing on traditional state powers over policing. The state-based troops are typically deployed at the request of governors to respond to emergencies in their own states such as natural disasters.
Federal law allows the president to federalize members of the National Guard without the permission of state officials in certain circumstances, including when there is a “rebellion or danger of a rebellion” against the government or when law enforcement is overwhelmed and cannot execute U.S. law.
Federal courts around the country have generally said the conditions do not exist to allow Mr. Trump to federalize guard troops. But an appeals court in Washington has allowed troops to remain in the nation’s capital while litigation continues, citing the city’s unique status as a federal district. The court battles come against the backdrop of street protests against the guard and violence in Washington, where a targeted attack on two National Guard members on Nov. 26 left one dead and another seriously injured.
With legal uncertainty hanging over the deployments, the Pentagon decided in November to withdraw hundreds of out-of-state soldiers from Illinois and Oregon, while keeping hundreds of other local troops activated.
Ann Marimow covers the Supreme Court for The Times from Washington.
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