Court Upholds NJ's ICE Firewall

A federal judge in Newark ordered the Trump Justice Department, for at least the fourth time this year, to let a state decide who walks through the nonpublic doors of its own buildings. On September 4, 2026, U.S. District Judge Georgette Castner dismissed the United States' lawsuit against Governor Mikie Sherrill and the State of New Jersey over Executive Order 12 — the directive barring state executive-branch agencies from letting federal immigration officers into nonpublic areas of state property, or using that property as a staging ground, without a judicial warrant. United States v. New Jersey, No. 26-1770 (D.N.J. Sept. 4, 2026).