Judge blocks Trump admin from withholding funding to 34 cities and counties over ‘sanctuary’ policies

(WASHINGTON) — A federal judge halted the Trump administration’s efforts to withhold grant funding from “sanctuary” cities and counties for not cooperating with immigration enforcement.

The 15-page order from Judge William Orrick grants a preliminary injunction in the administration’s effort to withhold funds and expands the number of cities that federal funds can’t be withheld from due to their “sanctuary” status for undocumented immigrants.

The Trump administration has sought to strip the cities’ Housing and Urban Development (HUD) grants due to their lack of cooperation with immigration authorities.

More than 30 cities from Albuquerque to Boston were under the ruling — which amounts to hundreds of millions of dollars in grants.

The Trump administration has been increasing its efforts to have so-called “sanctuary cities” cooperate with the federal government.

The Department of Justice in recent months has filed several legal challenges in several cities and states including New York City, New York state, Los Angeles, Colorado, Illinois, New Jersey, challenging policies that that blocked immigration officials from arresting people at or near courthouses without a warrant signed by a judge.