LOS ANGELES — City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto announced today that the City of Los Angeles secured a legal victory after the U.S. District Court granted its Motion to Dismiss the federal government’s challenge to the City’s 2024 ordinance entitled, “Prohibition of the Use of City Resources for Federal Immigration Enforcement.” Sometimes referred to as “the Sanctuary City Ordinance,” this prohibits City resources, property and personnel - including the Los Angeles Police Department (“LAPD”) - from cooperating with immigration authorities and sharing data related to an individual’s immigration status.
“This order reinforces the well-established principle that local governments have the authority to decide how to use their personnel and resources,” said Hydee Feldstein Soto, Los Angeles City Attorney. “The goal of this ordinance, and of LAPD’s immigration-related policies - which date back to Special Order 40 in the 1970s - is to encourage victims of and witnesses to crime to feel safe coming forward to seek help from LAPD regardless of their immigration status. It does not obstruct or impede lawful federal immigration enforcement operations.”
In the June 20, 2026 order, the court dismissed the federal government’s complaint on the grounds that the government failed to plausibly allege that the Ordinance violates the doctrine of intergovernmental immunity. Additionally, the court found that the federal government’s preemption arguments were insufficient, noting that the federal statutes cited do not support the government’s claims that the ordinance unlawfully restricts cooperation with federal immigration authorities.
The court also dismissed with prejudice the claims against Mayor Karen Bass, City Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson and the L.A. City Council, leaving the City of Los Angeles as the only defendant.
Since June 6, 2025, when unlawful immigration raids and roundups erupted on the streets of Los Angeles, City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto has been a national leader challenging the Trump administration in the key areas of immigration enforcement, the National Guard and the threat of the City losing $500 million in federal grants, including at least $56 million in emergency funds.
Order Re: Motion to Dismiss
Case No. CV 25-5917 FMO (AYPx) - United States of America vs. City of Los Angeles, et al.
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Hydee Feldstein Soto is the 43rd Los Angeles City Attorney, elected in November 2022 and sworn into office in December 2022. Her team of nearly 1,000 legal professionals, including 500+ attorneys, carries out legal work for the City of Los Angeles at her direction and under her supervision. She is the first female City Attorney in L.A. history.