A widening Justice Department probe is seeking documents from top state and city officials amid allegations they impeded a major federal immigration enforcement operation in the Twin Cities.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Federal prosecutors have issued six grand jury subpoenas to Minnesota officials as part of an investigation into whether state and local leaders obstructed or interfered with federal immigration enforcement during a large-scale operation in the Minneapolis–St. Paul area, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The subpoenas, which seek records rather than testimony, were served Tuesday on the offices of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Attorney General Keith Ellison, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her, and officials in Ramsey County and Hennepin County, the person said.
The source spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss an ongoing investigation.
The subpoenas were issued as the Trump administration pressed a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Minnesota and its largest cities seeking to block or curtail a surge in immigration enforcement that has unsettled the Twin Cities region for weeks. Justice Department lawyers called the suit “legally frivolous,” arguing that the Department of Homeland Security is acting within its lawful authority to enforce immigration statutes.
In a court filing Monday, the government said Operation Metro Surge has made Minnesota safer by arresting more than 3,000 people who were in the country illegally. “Put simply, Minnesota wants a veto over federal law enforcement,” Justice Department attorneys wrote.
Attorney General Ellison has accused the federal government of violating constitutional rights, including free speech, through what he has described as unprecedented enforcement sweeps. He has characterized the armed federal officers as poorly trained and said the operation amounted to an “invasion” that must stop.
The lawsuit, filed Jan. 12, asks the court to halt or limit the enforcement action. Additional filings are expected, though it remains unclear when U.S. District Judge Katherine Menendez will rule.
Constitutional law professor Ilan Wurman of the University of Minnesota Law School said he doubts the legal challenge will succeed. “There’s no question that federal law is supreme over state law, that immigration enforcement is within the power of the federal government, and the president, within statutory bounds, can allocate more federal enforcement resources to states who’ve been less cooperative,” Wurman told the AP.
Immigrant advocates have raised concerns about the scope and accuracy of the enforcement effort. Julia Decker, policy director at the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, said advocates have no reliable way to verify the government’s arrest figures or descriptions of those detained. She said U.S. citizens have been swept up during the Minnesota operation. “These are real people we’re talking about, that we potentially have no idea what is happening to them,” Decker said.
Tensions escalated after Renee Good, 37, was fatally shot Jan. 7 by an immigration officer while moving her vehicle, which had been blocking a Minneapolis street during ICE activity. Trump administration officials have said the officer, Jonathan Ross, fired in self-defense, though videos circulating publicly show the vehicle slowly turning away from him at the time of the shooting.
Since Good’s death, confrontations between the public and federal officers have intensified. Protesters have repeatedly shouted insults and blown whistles at ICE and U.S. Border Patrol agents, who have responded with tear gas and chemical irritants. Videos recorded by bystanders show officers using a battering ram to enter a residence, smashing vehicle windows, and pulling occupants from cars.
Local law enforcement leaders have also voiced concerns. Mark Bruley, the police chief of Brooklyn Park, said off-duty officers and other residents who are U.S. citizens have complained of being stopped without cause by federal agents. “Every one of these individuals is a person of color who has had this happening,” Bruley said at a news conference, adding that he believes the actions involve a small number of agents rather than all officers participating in the operation.
In a separate case, Judge Menendez ruled Friday that federal officers may not detain or use tear gas against peaceful protesters who are not obstructing law enforcement.
President Donald Trump last week threatened to invoke an 1807 law to deploy troops to Minnesota in response to the unrest, though he has since tempered those remarks publicly.
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