A federal judge in California has temporarily blocked the U.S. government from detaining and deporting certain immigrant survivors of domestic and sexual violence who have pending applications for legal protection.
In an order issued on May 20, 2026, U.S. District Judge André Birotte Jr. of the Central District of California granted a preliminary injunction in the case ICWC v. Noem. The ruling halts specific enforcement policies implemented by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) while litigation continues.
The lawsuit was filed by a coalition of legal and advocacy organizations, including the Center for Human Rights and Constitutional Law, Public Counsel, La Raza Centro Legal, the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, the Immigration Center for Women and Children, and the California Collaborative for Immigrant Justice.
The legal challenge targets recent agency directives regarding undocumented individuals seeking humanitarian protections, such as U visas for crime victims, T visas for human trafficking victims, and protections under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).
Judge Birotte’s order preliminarily certified three nationwide classes of immigrants protected under the injunction:
- Individuals with pending U visa, T visa, or VAWA self-petitions whom ICE has detained or sought to detain.
- Individuals granted deferred action based on pending U or T visas who were subsequently detained or removed by ICE without notice or a hearing.
- Individuals with pending U or T visa petitions who requested stays of removal before ICE enforced existing deportation orders.
The litigation challenges three specific federal policies:
- The “2025 Guidance”: An ICE policy that allows the agency to deport individuals with pending victim-based immigration petitions and removes a person’s status as a crime victim from being considered a positive factor when determining whether to detain them.
- The “De Facto Revocation Policy”: A practice where plaintiffs allege ICE detains or deports individuals despite deferred action status granted by USCIS.
- The “Blind Removal Policy”: A practice where ICE deports individuals with pending U or T visa applications who requested a stay of removal before USCIS issued a prima facie eligibility determination.
The injunction provides temporary protections for members of the certified classes while the broader legal dispute is litigated in court.
“This is a deeply important victory for immigrant survivors,” said Archi Pyati, CEO of the Tahirih Justice Center, a nonprofit providing legal and social services. “For years, Congress has recognized that survivors need protection, not punishment, and the importance of ensuring that all victims and witnesses feel safe to come forward and report crime. Targeting survivors of crime with punitive action not only worsens community safety, it’s the wrong thing to do.”
Pyati added: “The fight is far from over, but because of this decision, many survivors and communities are safer today. Immigrant survivors are doing exactly what Congress intended — reporting abuse, cooperating with law enforcement, filing applications for protection, attending hearings, and trying to rebuild their lives. Targeting them for detention and deportation is not only cruel, but it also rolls back the clock and makes all of us less safe. The court’s decision affirms that the executive cannot simply erase protections passed by Congress through enforcement policies designed to maximize deportations at all costs.”
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