On November 5, 2026, Attorney General Anthony G. Brown announced that a coalition of 22 attorneys general and Pennsylvania’s governor secured a court victory against the federal government’s immigration-enforcement conditions on public safety grants. District of Rhode Island Chief Judge John J. McConnell, Jr. declared the Trump administration’s actions unlawful and permanently enjoined any implementation or enforcement of these conditions.

According to Brown's office, this ruling secures funding for law enforcement and community safety programs in Maryland, including those dedicated to juvenile justice and violence prevention. The coalition successfully removed unlawful conditions affecting over $1.3 billion of Victims of Crime Act funds.

Press Release: Office of the Attorney General of Maryland

Published November 5, 2026. Reproduced in full from the Office of the Attorney General of Maryland.

Attorney General Brown and Coalition Win Major Case Protecting Crucial Law Enforcement Funding

BALTIMORE, MD: Attorney General Anthony G. Brown and a multistate coalition of 22 attorneys general and Pennsylvania’s governor secured an important victory in court that stops the federal government’s imposition of unlawful immigration-enforcement conditions on congressionally authorized public safety grants, including grants dedicated to juvenile justice and grants intended to keep law enforcement officers safe and fight crime.

District of Rhode Island Chief Judge John J. McConnell, Jr. declared the Trump administration’s actions unlawful and permanently enjoined any implementation or enforcement of these conditions.

“By threatening to pull funding from police and violence prevention programs, the Trump Administration risked Marylanders’ safety to pressure our State into doing Washington’s immigration work,” said Attorney General Brown. “This ruling secures the resources that keep Maryland law enforcement and the communities they serve safe from crime.”

Last year, the Trump administration, disregarding the clear letter of the law and intent of Congress, declared that states would be unable to access Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) funds unless they agreed to the administration’s extreme immigration demands. The multistate coalition succeeded in getting the federal government to remove those conditions on over $1.3 billion of VOCA funds.

The Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Formula Grants (known as the Byrne JAG Program) was affected by these unlawful conditions. For decades, regardless of which political party held power, the Byrne JAG Program has been the leading federal source of criminal justice funding to state and local governments.

In Maryland, DOJ grants fund a broad range of programs and services supporting public safety, victim services, and the administration of justice. For example, the Baltimore City Sheriff’s Office Safe Pathways project uses Byrne State Crisis Intervention Program funds, which is separate from the Byrne JAG Program and would also have been affected by these conditions, to support firearm safe-storage education, community outreach, behavioral health referrals, and violence prevention. The program has served more than 17,000 individuals, engaged over 10,400 participants, conducted 97 outreach events, delivered 890 firearm safety trainings, and made 173 referrals for supportive services.

Civil immigration enforcement is a federal responsibility and not a state government responsibility. The Trump administration’s unlawful attempts to coerce states into doing their bidding conflict with core principles of American governance: the separation of powers and federalism. The administration’s actions violated laws passed by Congress as well as the Spending Clause of the U.S. Constitution.

Joining Attorney General Brown in this lawsuit were the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaiʻi, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, as well as the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.