Minnesota, Minneapolis, Saint Paul file lawsuit to stop ICE’s ‘federal invasion’

MINNEAPOLIS — The state of Minnesota and the cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul have filed a lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security to end the “unlawful, unprecedented surge of the federal law enforcement agents into Minnesota,” Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said at a news conference on Monday.

“Because this has to stop,” Ellison said, standing alongside Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Saint Paul Mayor Kaohly Her. “We allege that the obvious targeting of Minnesota for our diversity, for our democracy and our differences of opinion with the federal government, is a violation of the Constitution and federal law.”

The suit claims the surge amounts to a “federal invasion” to conduct unconstitutional stops and arrests at sensitive locations, including schools and hospitals, “all under the guise of lawful immigration enforcement.”

“These poorly trained, aggressive and armed agents of the federal state have terrorized Minnesota with widespread unlawful conduct,” Ellison said at the news conference.

The complaint alleges DHS is violating the 10th Amendment by its actions and follows a pattern of the Trump administration targeting Democrat-led cities.

The complaint also alleges that the administration is not using targeted enforcement and instead have been “conducting raids at job sites and businesses, detaining and deporting individuals while they perform essential work that directly benefits Plaintiffs’ communities.”

“DHS agents also appear to be conducting general sweeps and detaining people within their path based on their race and ethnicity,” the complaint said.

The complaint also alleges that businesses and schools in Minneapolis have been hurt by the federal surge, and the state claims DHS violated state law by staging immigration enforcement operations on state property.

The lawsuit asks a judge to preliminarily bar DHS from arresting individuals unless there’s “probably cause” to believe they have committed a crime. The suit also asks to prevent DHS from threatening physical force and brandishing weapons.

Notably, the lawsuit aims to prevent federal agents from “pointing firearms at individuals who are not posing an immediate threat of death or seriously bodily injury to another person.”