A Minnesota prosecutor announced Monday that her office is launching an investigation that may lead to charges against federal agents, including Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino, who was constantly reprimanded by federal judges over his agents’ aggressive and often violent actions, and his leadership, up until the point when he was relieved of his duties in the Twin Cities by the Trump administration.
According to the Associated Press, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said in a news conference that her office is already looking into 17 cases, including one where Bovino threw a smoke canister at protesters, and one where federal officers making an arrest outside a high school deployed chemical irritants while students and staff were in the area. That incident reportedly occurred on Jan. 7, the same day Minneapolis protester Renee Nicole Good was killed by an agent, although it’s unclear if Moriarty has included her killing and that of Alex Pretti in the list of potential investigations.
“Make no mistake, we are not afraid of the legal fight, and we are committed to doing this correctly,” Moriarty said. “Operation Metro Surge caused immeasurable harm to our community.”
Moriarty’s office has set up an online portal where photos, videos, and eyewitness accounts from any point during Operation Metro Surge can be uploaded.
Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security has predictably responded to Moriarty’s announcement by claiming these investigations are “unlawful.”
“What these States are trying to do is unlawful, and they know it,” DHS said in a statement. “Federal officials acting in the course of their duties are immune from liability under state law.”
For months, members of the Trump administration, including Vice President JD Vance and White House Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, have been repeating the claim that federal agents have blanket immunity from state prosecution while in the line of duty, a narrative legal experts appear to largely disagree with.
Mind you, this is coming from the same department of the Trump administration that was previously drowning in backlash after its officials got caught brazenly lying about the manner in which Pretti was killed, which they also did in the case of Good. In fact, that backlash led to Bovino being ousted and to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem being placed under intense scrutiny herself. Noem’s now-former spokesperson, Tricia McLaughlin, also recently left her post at DHS, although it’s unclear if that is related to the PR nightmare that came of federal operations in Minnesota.
DHS’s statement “added that local officials should instead consider how their actions have endangered federal law enforcement officers,” AP reported. The Trump administration has also been making claims for the past year that federal agents are “under siege” and constantly under attack by protesters, but can never seem to provide much evidence that there is any truth to those claims.
Not that this administration would know anything about truth.
SEE ALSO:
Nobody Wants This: ICE Is Catching L’s At Every Turn In Minnesota
ICE Occupation In Minneapolis Coming To An End Soon, Says Tom Homan
