AG Brown, multistate coalition win case protecting $7.5 million in law enforcement funding for Washington

Attorney General Nick Brown and a multistate coalition of 23 states secured a victory in court Wednesday that blocks the federal government from withholding congressionally-authorized grants for law enforcement from Washington, including grants that fund ongoing criminal justice and public safety operations, such as crisis intervention programs, support for survivors of domestic violence, and efforts to reduce youth recidivism.

The federal government had attempted to withhold the funds unless states agreed to unlawfully imposed conditions requiring cooperation with the federal government's immigration enforcement efforts. District of Rhode Island Chief Judge John J. McConnell, Jr., declared the federal government's actions unlawful and permanently blocked any implementation or enforcement of these conditions.

"The federal government's attempt to play politics with public safety was dangerous and illegal," said AG Brown. "Our communities will be safer because of this ruling."

This lawsuit resolves two different attempts by the federal government to unlawfully impose funding conditions on states. In the first attempt, the federal government declared that states would be unable to access grants that provide critical resources to victims and survivors of crime through the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) unless they agreed to the administration's extreme immigration demands. The multistate coalition filed suit and succeeded in getting the federal government to remove those conditions on over $1.3 billion of VOCA funds.

This year, the U.S. Department of Justice tried again to apply these illegal conditions to essential grant programs, including funds dedicated to law enforcement and juvenile justice. For example, the federal government attempted to withhold funds distributed through the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Formula Grants. For decades, regardless of which political party held power, the Byrne Programs have been the leading federal source of criminal justice funding to state and local governments.

With Wednesday's ruling, Washington will once again be eligible to receive these grants. In total, the ruling will restore $7.5 million in grants for Washington that the federal government attempted to withhold.

Brown joined this suit, which was co-led by the attorneys general of New Jersey, California, Delaware, Illinois, and Rhode Island, with the attorneys general of Colorado, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont, Virginia, and Wisconsin, and the Governor of Pennsylvania.

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