This is a win for cities pushing back against federal pressure on immigration enforcement. It keeps Chicago’s protections in place—for now—and signals that courts may not always side with aggressive federal crackdowns. For immigrants and advocates, it’s a relief, but the broader political fight over sanctuary policies is far from over.

The Justice Department suit argued that the policies thwarted enforcement efforts.

A federal judge tossed out a lawsuit by the Justice Department that tried to challenge Chicago’s sanctuary city policies, which limit local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. The DOJ claimed these policies got in the way of their efforts, but the court wasn’t convinced.