WASHINGTON — A federal judge in Washington, D.C., has refused to block the Trump administration from building a 62-mile stretch of border wall across the Tohono O’odham Nation’s reservation in Arizona, allowing the project to proceed despite the tribe’s objections.
U.S. District Judge Richard Leon rejected the Nation’s request for a preliminary injunction, finding that the tribe had not shown the planned construction would unlawfully alter reservation boundaries or amount to trespass, according to a ruling reported on Saturday.
The Tohono O’odham Nation had argued that the Department of Homeland Security’s plans would encroach on tribal land, disrupt religious practices and damage culturally significant sites. The tribe also contended that construction could interfere with communities and tribal members whose lands and families extend across the U.S.-Mexico border.
Leon said the case presented unusual legal questions but concluded that the federal government’s interests in border security and law enforcement outweighed the harms asserted by the tribe, according to the ruling.
The Nation, which has a reservation of about 2.8 million acres along 62 miles of the Arizona-Mexico border, filed the lawsuit in June against Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott and Border Patrol Chief Rosario Vasquez.
The tribe has long opposed construction of a physical wall on its reservation and has said it supports border security measures using vehicles, surveillance technology and law enforcement cooperation. DHS has said it remains committed to coordinating with tribal nations while advancing construction.
The ruling permits the administration to proceed with the border-wall project while the broader legal dispute continues.
