The US Department of Justice has launched a lawsuit against the State of Maryland, aiming to strike down a newly enacted state law that limits local police cooperation with federal immigration agents. The law, known as the Community Trust Act, prevents local correctional facilities from inquiring about a person’s citizenship or place of birth and prohibits holding individuals past their release dates based solely on federal immigration detainer requests.

Background

The lawsuit argues that the new Maryland statute directly violates the Supremacy Clause of the US Constitution, which dictates that federal laws override conflicting state mandates. The federal government claims Maryland’s Community Trust Act was explicitly designed to undermine efforts to accelerate deportations and target criminal illegal immigrants.

The conflict escalated further in June 2026, when the Maryland Attorney General’s Office issued official guidance confirming that state laws control when state and local officers may provide information or assistance for the purposes of immigration enforcement. The federal government claims this guidance is a clear illustration of unlawful intergovernmental immunity violations, effectively trying to regulate and discriminate against federal operations.

Implications

The lawsuit contains four specific counts against Maryland, including express preemption, conflict preemption, unlawful regulation of the federal government, and unlawful discrimination against the federal government. The Justice Department is requesting a permanent injunction to prevent Maryland from enforcing the Community Trust Act, alongside an official declaration that the law is invalid.

Original reporting: Tampa Free Press — read the source article.