Federal judge blocks Trump administration from deploying National Guard troops to Chicago, rest of state
Jason Meisner, Jonathan Bullington and Dan Petrella, Chicago Tribune
Updated Thu, October 9, 2025 at 5:47 PM CDT
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CHICAGO — A federal judge in Chicago on Thursday blocked the Trump administration from deploying National Guard troops to the city and state as part of its ongoing immigration enforcement push, saying she had no faith in the government’s claims of out-of-control violence and that it was federal agents who started it by aggressively targeting protesters with tear gas and militaristic tactics.
The ruling by U.S. District Judge April Perry is the latest setback for President Donald Trump, who has claimed ongoing violence and clashes between protesters and immigration agents in Chicago and other U.S. cities justified sending federalized troops onto the streets as a security force, even as local and state officials accused the president of manufacturing a crisis to justify unnecessary — and unprecedented — force.
The temporary restraining order issued by Perry, which took effect immediately, bars the president from deploying federalized National Guard troops from any state to any location in Illinois. A written ruling would be issued Friday, she said.
Gov. JB Pritzker cheered the ruling in a statement on social media, writing, “”Donald Trump is not a king — and his administration is not above the law.”
Perry’s ruling “confirmed what we all know: there is no credible evidence of a rebellion in the state of Illinois. And no place for the National Guard in the streets of American cities like Chicago,” Pritzker wrote.
A spokesperson for Trump, meanwhile, said the judge got it wrong — and there will be an appeal.
“Amidst ongoing violent riots and lawlessness, that local leaders like Pritzker have refused to step in to quell, President Trump has exercised his lawful authority to protect federal officers and assets,” White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson wrote in an emailed statement. “President Trump will not turn a blind eye to the lawlessness plaguing American cities and we expect to be vindicated by a higher court.”