A federal court in Florida granted partial summary judgment in Brown v. Ramsay, a federal lawsuit challenging the illegal detention of Peter Sean Brown, who was arrested and detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

According to the ACLU, Monroe County Sheriff Rick Ramsay illegally detained Brown and violated his Fourth Amendment rights in April 2018.  The ruling stated that ICE lacked “probable cause to issue the detainer in the first place” and that the office of the Sheriff ignored evidence that Brown was a legal U.S. citizen.

“MCSO cannot abdicate its legal responsibility and turn a blind eye to this information,” the ruling read.

Cody Wofsy, deputy project director of the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project, expressed his gratitude for the court’s ruling.

“We have seen the ICE detainer system fail time and again, but the County still chose to put Mr. Brown through this nightmare,” Wofsy said. “At a moment in which we are seeing a raft of unlawful immigration arrests of citizens by federal and local authorities, this decision is a key reminder that the Fourth Amendment safeguards us all.”

"This case highlights the significant threat posed to U.S. citizens by frequent ICE errors, which are exacerbated when local law enforcement agencies participate in immigration enforcement,” added Amien Kacou, staff attorney at the ACLU of Florida. “This case makes one thing clear: state and local police who act as ICE’s enforcers do so at their own peril. The Sheriff’s office cannot deflect responsibility onto ICE and ignore its independent duty to ensure there is probable cause before arresting someone like Mr. Brown. His perseverance in this lawsuit reaffirms that the U.S. Constitution protects every Floridian, regardless of citizenship."

The decision is a significant victory for immigration activists, as ICE has accelerated mass deportation efforts throughout the country. In Los Angeles, protests against ICE raids in the state have caused tension to escalate following the deployment of 700 active-duty Marines to join the National Guard troops in response to the demonstrations. For the last five days, major freeways were blocked off, self-driving cars were set ablaze, and law enforcement used tear gas, rubber bullets, and flash-bangs to get the crowd under control.

To date, more than 100,00 people have been arrested by ICE.