A federal appeals court ruled that ICE can continue using Seattle’s Boeing Field for deportation flights, reversing a 2019 King County order that opposed Trump-era immigration policies. The court found the county’s actions violated a WWII-era contract granting federal use of the airport and unfairly targeted ICE operations.
The order had forced ICE to relocate flights to Yakima, increasing costs and security risks due to the greater distance from detention centers. Judge Daniel A. Bress emphasized that King County was not being required to enforce federal immigration laws but to remove discriminatory barriers against federal operations.
The new ruling also mandates transparency, requiring the county to provide public video access to deportation flights and maintain a flight log on its website.
