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A federal judge in Florida said an order that blocks local police from enforcing a new state immigration law applied to all local agencies despite the state’s attorney general stating otherwise in a recent memo.
U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams told attorneys for the state during a hearing in Miami on Tuesday that she planned to issue a preliminary injunction against a statute that makes it a misdemeanor for undocumented migrants to enter Florida by eluding immigration officials.
Williams said she was "surprised and shocked" that Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier told local police in a letter last week that they didn't need to follow her order.
"What I am offended by is someone suggesting you don’t have to follow my order, that it’s not legitimate," Williams said.
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Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier during a press conference on April 14. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
Earlier this month, Williams issued a temporary restraining order against the statute. Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the legislation into law in February as part of President Donald Trump’s push to crack down on illegal immigration.
A Task Force comprised of local and federal law enforcement agencies searched a suspected illegal migrant's vehicle in St. Johns County, Florida on Monday, Feb. 24, 2025, following a traffic stop. (Stephanie Keith for Fox News Digital)
Williams extended the order another 11 days after learning authorities had arrested 15 people, including a U.S. citizen born in Georgia.
After the extension, Uthmeier sent a memo to state and local law enforcement officers telling them to stop enforcing the law, even though he disagreed with the judge’s order.
Five days later, however, Uthmeier sent another memo saying that the judge was legally wrong and that he couldn't prevent local police officers and deputies from enforcing the law.
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No additional arrests have been reported since Uthmeier's second memo.
Fox News Digital's Julia Bonavita and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
