Justice Department sues Arizona for installing shipping containers along southern border

Washington — The Justice Department has filed a lawsuit against the state of Arizona and its top officials over the installation of hundreds of double-stacked shipping containers along the state's border with Mexico, further escalating the fight between GOP Gov. Doug Ducey and the Biden administration over border enforcement.

Filed in U.S. District Court in Arizona, the suit alleges the state, acting pursuant to an executive order from Ducey, has trespassed on lands owned and managed by the federal government without securing the required permits or authorization. Federal prosecutors argued the multi-ton shipping containers damage federal lands, threaten public safety and impede federal law enforcement's ability to perform their duties.

The Justice Department is asking the court to order Arizona to stop installing the containers and remove them from the remote San Rafael Valley in Cochise County, as well as declare that Ducey's executive order violates the Constitution.