Trump admin illegally using crime victim funds as a 'bargaining chip' to punish states that don't support its immigration policies, new lawsuit says

The Trump administration is trying to illegally "strong-arm" states into supporting the president's migration policies — deploying a "brazen" and "unlawful" strategy, successful which the authorities tries to "manipulate" captious backing for transgression victims and usage it arsenic a "bargaining chip," according to section attorneys general.

A conjugation of 20 states and Washington, D.C., filed a suit connected Monday successful national tribunal to artifact the Department of Justice from withholding funds from transgression victims successful states that garbage to cooperate with civilian migration enforcement, saying enactment is "urgently needed" arsenic the withholding of backing would origin "significant, imminent, and irreparable harm," according to the group's complaint. The states see California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin.

"More than 40 years ago, Congress enacted the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) to code the transgression justness system's neglect of transgression victims," the ailment explains. "The Office for Victims of Crime (OVC), an bureau housed wrong the U.S. Department of Justice (USDOJ) that is charged with administering VOCA grants, has present declared that States volition beryllium incapable to entree VOCA funds unless they accede to the enforcement branch's migration enforcement priorities. This caller argumentation would enforce unprecedented conditions connected the usage of VOCA funds, requiring States to assistance the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) successful unrelated migration enforcement efforts."

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During its inception, VOCA created a bid of assistance programs to alteration states to supply "critical" resources and services to victims and survivors of transgression arsenic they sought to retrieve and "restore normalcy." This included unfortunate and witnesser advocacy services; exigency shelter; intersexual battle forensic exams; medical, ceremonial and burial expenses; compensation for mislaid wages; and "much more," the states say.

"Defendants' brazen effort to manipulate captious backing for transgression victims to strong-arm states into supporting the administration's migration policies runs headlong into 2 basal principles of American governance: separation of powers and federalism," the ailment charges. "Defendants' imposition of caller conditions forces plaintiff states either to wantonness captious funds to enactment transgression victims oregon relinquish their sovereign rights to determine however to usage authorities and section resources."

Millions of radical are said to usage unfortunate services each year, according to the states, with much than 2.8 cardinal victims federally assisted successful 2024 and outgo for much than 88,000 claims being recorded for losses suffered. More than 8.5 cardinal transgression victims utilized national VOCA funds betwixt 2021 and 2024, per the complaint.

The determination to effort and scrap the unfortunate assistance came connected Donald Trump's inauguration time earlier this year, with an enforcement bid directing national officials to "ensure that alleged 'sanctuary' jurisdictions … bash not person entree to national funds" and to instrumentality "any different lawful actions, transgression oregon civil" that they deem warranted.

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"The national authorities is attempting to usage transgression unfortunate funds arsenic a bargaining spot to unit states into doing its bidding connected migration enforcement," said New York Attorney General Letitia James successful a statement Monday announcing the lawsuit. "These grants were created to assistance survivors heal and recover, and we volition combat to guarantee they proceed to service that purpose."

According to the complaint, it is simply a usurpation of the Administrative Procedure Act to scrap the unfortunate backing based connected migration enforcement conditions acceptable distant by the president, which is "contrary to the Constitution and national laws." The DOJ did not respond to requests for remark by Law&Crime connected the allegations.

"Playing authorities with the lives of radical who person suffered truthful greatly is reckless, it is cruel, and successful this lawsuit – it is illegal," said New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin successful a statement. "We are filing suit contiguous to basal up for our residents, and for the law, which prevents these unlawful conditions connected Congressionally-authorized funding. We look guardant to blocking these conditions and preventing further harms to transgression victims."