Supreme Court stays Los Angeles restrictions on ICE enforcement factors

On Sept. 8, 2025 the Supreme Court granted the government's application to stay U.S. District JMJudge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong's injunction by a 6-3 vote in the case Noem v. Vasquez Perdomo. The stay is temporary and does not decide the constitutional merits.

Judge Frimpong had enjoined ICE from stopping or detaining people based solely on any combination of four factors: apparent race or ethnicity; speaking Spanish or accented English; presence at locations where undocumented people gather; and performing certain low-wage jobs. The injunction was in effect from July 11, 2025 until the Sept. 8 stay.

The Supreme Court's order temporarily halted the injunction while appeals proceed in the Ninth Circuit. Justice Brett Kavanaugh filed a concurrence saying apparent ethnicity may be considered as one factor but "cannot alone furnish reasonable suspicion."

Justice Sotomayor dissented, joined by Justices Kagan and Jackson, warning that the stay endangers Fourth Amendment protections and allows the government to "seize people based on their appearance, language, and occupation." The case remains under appeal.