October 6. 2025 Original MassLive Article Link
The Trump administration has paused putting conditions on grants given out to help crime victims based on whether a state assists with federal immigration enforcement.
A spokesperson with the U.S. Department of Justice said Monday that the department and a group of states in a lawsuit “agreed to suspend the conditions until a (preliminary injunction) can be litigated.” Doing so, the spokesperson added, will avoid a situation in which the parties argue for a restraining order that would only be temporary.
A statement issued Friday by Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell — saying the administration “dropped its plan” to tie conditions to grants given out through the Victims of Crime Act — was incorrect, the DOJ spokesperson said.
The message from the DOJ comes at a time when the department’s responses are limited because of the shutdown. A spokesperson for the state Attorney General’s Office did not immediately return a request for comment.
In August, Campbell’s office joined an immigration-related lawsuit involving 21 states. It argued the Trump administration ignored Congress’ power of the purse and the balance between federal and state authority, when it told states they would only get funds to help victims of crime if they helped with the federal government’s effort to enforce immigration law.
At stake? About $1.4 billion in grants given out nationwide through the President Ronald Reagan-era Victims of Crime Act. The funds go toward expenses such as funeral costs, crime scene cleanup and sexual assault forensic exams, according to Campbell’s office.
In her statement Friday announcing the administration’s change of policy, Campbell said the three dozen lawsuits her office helped file against the Trump administration are working. The funds in question, Campbell’s statement said, assist victims as they “get back on their feet” and deal with trauma.
“This administration’s attempt to play politics with the lives and well-being of our most vulnerable residents is both inhumane and unconstitutional,” Campbell’s statement said.
Since the states filed the complaint in August, the case’s docket has been relatively quiet. An attorney representing the government only filed an appearance in the case.
In fiscal 2025, which runs from July 1 to June 30, Massachusetts used these federal funds to pay 804 claimants about $4.2 million. It also gave 95 organizations working with crime victims about $17.6 million, which helped about 32,000 people, according to Campbell’s office.
Other lawsuits over crime victim funds
This is not the Trump administration’s only attempt to change the rules surrounding federal funds intended to help crime victims.
Campbell’s office filed a lawsuit last week with 21 states, arguing the Trump administration violated the Constitution’s Spending Clause when it told states that a series of grants “to develop a full ecosystem of programs and services that support access to justice” could not be used to provide legal services to immigrants in the country without legal authorization.
Additionally, a group of 17 domestic violence organizations, which includes the Boston-based Jane Doe Inc., obtained a preliminary stay against the DOJ in August after they sued over the department’s attempt to place conditions on awards through the Violence Against Women Act. Among the conditions, the department said “gender ideology” and “illegal DEI” were outside the scope of the grants.
In his Aug. 8 order, federal Judge William Smith in Rhode Island said the domestic violence groups were likely to succeed in making their argument that the department acted arbitrarily or capriciously when imposing the conditions.