Trump Threatens to Cut Rape Kit Funds Over Sanctuary Cities

The Trump administration has escalated its pressure campaign against sanctuary jurisdictions, threatening to withhold federal funding for rape kit processing, police body armor, and ambulance services from cities that refuse to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The move has triggered a wave of legal battles as affected municipalities argue that tying public safety funding to immigration enforcement is both illegal and morally wrong.

The Funding Threat

In October 2025, the Department of Justice published a list of 12 states, 18 cities, and three counties deemed “sanctuary jurisdictions” that “materially impede enforcement of federal immigration statutes.” These jurisdictions generally refuse to share information with ICE, hold individuals for ICE, or allow agents into their jails.

Last year, President Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to suspend grants to states and cities that do not cooperate with immigration officials. The DOJ is now using that authority to condition public safety grants — including funding from the $350 million Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI) — on cities signing cooperation agreements with ICE.

Fresno Fights Back

Fresno City Attorney Andrew Janz is leading the charge against the DOJ over a $2 million SAKI grant. The city has used past SAKI funding to test more than 2,500 backlogged rape kits, fund 33 new cases, and convict four people of rape.

“Justice for victims shouldn’t be politicized. It has nothing to do with immigration enforcement,” Janz told USA TODAY. “DOJ sent out a warning shot, we sent one back.”

DOJ grant administrators sent Fresno a notice in June noting that the city had not signed a certification agreeing to cooperate with the Department of Homeland Security and ICE. Janz responded unequivocally: the city will not help ICE. State law prohibits sharing the type of information ICE demands, and the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld the constitutionality of that law.

“This is a bad time for them to hold up testing for victims of sexual assault,” Janz said. “This is a no-brainer. Let’s help these victims get justice.”

First Responders at Risk

The funding threat extends well beyond rape kit testing. Police officers in Corvallis, Oregon, rely on DOJ-funded body armor, according to Police Chief Jason Harvey, who warned in a legal filing that losing the funding “risks officer safety and reduces their capacity to effectively protect city residents.” The city’s fire chief, Ben Janes, warned that ambulance response times would suffer without federal support.

In Santa Cruz, California, Finance Director Elizabeth Cabell detailed how FEMA grants, policing funds, and a water-supply project are all in jeopardy. She warned of potential layoffs and cuts to basic services.

“Not knowing whether Santa Cruz will receive its federal funding puts the operations of at least four City Departments in question,” Cabell wrote in a legal filing.

Court Rulings and Legal Outlook

On July 9, U.S. District Judge William Orrick ruled that the federal government could not withhold public safety grants to Oregon and California cities. In a 68-page ruling, Orrick wrote that Trump overstepped and that the conditions attached to the grants “have nothing to do with or contradict the Congressional purpose.”

Orrick, an Obama appointee, has ruled against Trump’s sanctuary city funding policies three times — in 2017, 2025, and again this month. As NPR reported, the same judge previously blocked the administration from denying funding to Boston, Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, and 30 other cities.

Despite these rulings, the fight continues. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has been weighing related cases, and the ultimate resolution may require Supreme Court intervention.

Victims Caught in the Middle

Advocates for sexual assault victims have condemned the administration’s approach. Ilse Knecht, director of policy and advocacy at the Joyful Heart Foundation, called the funding threats “wrong-headed.”

“Denying a city funding to test rape kits is wrong-headed when your stated goal is taking dangerous offenders off the streets,” Knecht told USA TODAY. “Rapists are often serial rapists. They’re not specialists, and they don’t stop until they’re stopped. Red state or blue state, these guys move around.”

The stakes are tangible. Last week, Dallas police announced the arrest of Jarvis Pierce, 35, using DNA testing from the federal SAKI program, as CBS News reported. He is accused of a cold case rape from more than a decade ago.

Meanwhile, more than 21 locales that initially received SAKI grants are now deemed sanctuary jurisdictions. Portland has $8.6 million in active DOJ grants at risk, and Los Angeles County has been forced to forgo SAKI funding entirely. Oregon’s rape kit backlog, which had been cleared in 2018, returned in 2024, with Portland Police waiting eight months for kits to be tested.

What’s Next

The impasse remains unresolved. The DOJ, through spokesperson Wyn Hornbuckle, maintains that “applicants are required to submit a certification that they will comply with federal law.” Cities from Seattle to San Diego are launching their own court battles, while others like Miami have signed ICE agreements and now face political backlash from residents.

As legal challenges mount, the central question remains: can the federal government use its spending power to compel local cooperation with immigration enforcement — even when that means jeopardizing funding for sexual assault investigations and public safety? The answer may ultimately come from the Supreme Court.