From: maximusheadroom@gmx.com   
      
   County in Washington State Cannot Block ICE Deportation Flights, Appeals Court   
   Rules   
      
   A federal court has struck down King County's ban on ICE deportation flights,   
   citing federal supremacy and breach of contractual obligations.   
      
   A federal appeals court has ruled that an order in King County, Washington,   
   barring U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from using a   
   Seattle-area   
   airport to deport illegal immigrants from the country is unlawful, affirming a   
   lower court's summary judgment and clearing the way for the removals to   
   continue.   
      
   Judge Daniel A. Bress of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit wrote   
   in the Nov. 29 opinion that a 2019 executive order issued by King County   
   Executive Dow Constantine that prohibited the ICE deportation flights was   
   unlawful. The ruling identified two primary legal violations: discrimination   
   against federal operations under the supremacy clause of the U.S. Constitution   
   and breach of a World War II-era instrument of transfer agreement governing the   
   airport's use.   
      
   Bress wrote that the executive order's flight ban "discriminatorily burdens the   
   United States" in the enforcement of federal immigration law and that this   
   "discrimination, plain on the face of the Order, contravenes the   
   intergovernmental immunity doctrine." Rooted in the supremacy clause, the   
   intergovernmental immunity doctrine protects federal government operations from   
   discriminatory or obstructive actions by state and local governments.   
      
   The court also found that through Constantine's directive, King County violated   
   its contractual obligations under the instrument of transfer agreement, which   
   granted the federal government the right to use the King County International   
   Airport, commonly known as Boeing Field.   
      
   The dispute dates back to April 2019, when Constantine issued an executive   
   order   
   that explicitly opposed ICE's deportation operations. The directive instructed   
   airport officials to ensure that future leases and operating agreements with   
   fixed-base operators-the companies that provide essential services such as   
   fueling and aircraft maintenance-contained provisions prohibiting them from   
   servicing ICE flights.   
      
   Constantine justified the order by citing the county's disagreement with   
   federal   
   immigration policies, stating that the flights raised "deeply troubling human   
   rights concerns which are inconsistent with the values of King County,"   
   including family separations and deportation of people into unsafe conditions   
   in   
   other countries. The order effectively halted deportation flights at the   
   airport.   
      
   In response to the order, the Department of Justice filed suit in February   
   2020,   
   arguing that the directive unlawfully obstructed federal immigration   
   enforcement   
   and violated the terms of the airport's transfer to King County based on an   
   instrument of transfer agreement under the Surplus Property Act of 1944. The   
   government sought to nullify the executive order and secure a permanent   
   injunction against its enforcement.   
      
   The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington sided with the   
   federal government, granting summary judgment in its favor. The court held that   
   the order discriminated against federal operations by singling out ICE flights   
   while allowing other users unrestricted access to Boeing Field. It also found   
   that the order violated the instrument of transfer agreement, which required   
   King County to allow federal use of the airport for nonexclusive purposes.   
      
   King County appealed the decision to the Ninth Circuit, arguing that the   
   executive order was a lawful exercise of local authority as a market   
   participant   
   and did not violate federal law. The county claimed that it was acting to   
   address legitimate safety, liability, and operational concerns stemming from   
   ICE's   
   activities.   
      
   However, the Ninth Circuit rejected King County's arguments, affirming the   
   lower   
   court's ruling. Writing on behalf of the panel, Bress noted that the executive   
   order unlawfully targeted federal operations and discriminated against ICE's   
   use   
   of the airport based on opposition to federal immigration policy. The appeals   
   court also determined that King County violated its contractual obligations   
   under the instrument of transfer agreement.   
      
   The Epoch Times reached out to King County officials with a request for comment   
   on the ruling but did not get a response by publication time.   
      
   The ruling was made weeks before the incoming Trump administration is set to   
   take office and begin a deportation operation.   
      
   https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/county-in-washington-state-cann   
   t-block-ice-deportation-flights-appeals-court-rules-5768774   
      
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