Minnesota filed a second lawsuit March 24 against the Trump administration over access to evidence in the shootings of two protesters and an illegal immigrant during a federal immigration operation in January.
State authorities filed the federal complaint in a Washington, D.C., court, asking a judge to order the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department Homeland Security (DHS) to hand over evidence related to the deaths of Renee Good, Alex Pretti, and Julio Sosa-Celis to allow the state to start a separate investigation.
The Trump administration refused to conduct a joint investigation with Minnesota into the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, according to the complaint. Both were shot by federal immigration officers during protests of “Operation Metro Surge.”
Sosa-Celis, an illegal immigrant, was shot in the leg during a scuffle with law enforcement in Minneapolis on Jan. 15, according to DHS.
“It’s astonishing this lawsuit is even necessary, but in Minnesota, nobody is above the law,” Attorney General Keith Ellison said in a Facebook post. “The feds’ choice not to share evidence with us is arbitrary and capricious and has no rational basis,” he added in a separate statement.
In the lawsuit, state and local authorities claim the federal government blocked state forensic crime investigators from entering the crime scene following Pretti’s shooting and refused to comply with a judicial warrant. The state also claimed federal agents told state investigators they had been ordered to only allow the FBI to process the crime scene.
State investigators say they were also told they couldn’t join in interviews with federal officers.
Similar actions took place after Sosa-Celis was shot, according to Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty.
“Every person in this country deserves transparency and accountability from their government,” Moriarty said at a press conference March 24. “We are prepared to fight for transparency and accountability that the federal government is desperate to avoid. We will fight as long as it takes.”
The state has hired two outside legal groups—the Washington Litigation Group and the Institute for Congressional Advocacy and Protection—for assistance with the lawsuit on a pro-bono basis.
The state asserts in the lawsuit that it has the responsibility to gather the evidence, evaluate the facts, and decide whether Minnesota criminal law was violated.
“The State of Minnesota has the authority and responsibility to protect against and address violence within its borders, including by prosecuting homicides, attempted homicides, and assaults,” the state wrote in the latest lawsuit.
The DOJ and DHS didn’t return requests for comment about the lawsuit March 24.
Noem told lawmakers ICE officers were operating in a “dangerous environment” and faced escalating threats fueled by political rhetoric.
President Donald Trump has appointed Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Oka.) as new secretary of Homeland Security. He was sworn in March 24 to replace Noem, who will be leaving March 31.