Evers says Wisconsin will join lawsuit to stop ICE, CBP agents from infringing on citizen rights
Two Minnesotans – Renee Good and Alex Pretti – have been killed by immigration agents over the past three weeks, with the federal government appearing to squelch state investigations into the shootings.
Gov. Tony Evers has announced in a press release that Wisconsin is joining a coalition of more than a dozen states in a lawsuit challenging the administration’s deployment of ICE and the U.S. Border Patrol.
Evers’ statement stated he is “petitioning for a temporary restraining order against the federal government’s actions.”
Wisconsin is among a coalition of states that, according to the filing, “have a strong interest in ensuring that federal immigration enforcement is not used as an excuse to infringe the sovereignty of the States.”
“Under the claimed auspices of carrying out immigration enforcement,” the filing continues, “the federal government has seriously undermined state and local authorities and made it impossible for the public to go about their day-to-day activities because they fear being stopped, tear gassed, or worse. If left unchecked, the federal government will no doubt be emboldened to continue its unlawful conduct in Minnesota and to repeat it elsewhere.”
Minnesota recently challenged the Trump Administration’s presence of more than 3,000 federal agents in Minnesota communities. The lawsuit seeks a temporary restraining order to stop alleged unlawful Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) actions.
The states are not arguing that immigration enforcement itself violates state sovereignty. They argue that the manner of enforcement does. “Defendants’ actions have the purpose and effect of inflicting maximal harm on state, city, and community institutions,” reads one passage.
“It is about causing fear in an American city and punishing a community and a state,” Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul said. “References to demands such as releasing voter rolls demonstrate that these actions are not about immigration but about intimidation and control.”
Two Minnesotans – Renee Good and Alex Pretti – have been killed by immigration agents over the past three weeks, with the federal government appearing to squelch state investigations into the shootings.
Another man was shot in the leg; a family was tear-gassed while in their car; a member of the Hmong community was taken out of his home and arrested by agents despite being a citizen; and a child was used to lure out family members, who were in the process of seeking asylum.
“Wisconsin stands with our neighbors across the river in Minnesota,” Evers said in the statement. “American citizens are having their rights and freedoms violated and are being put in unsafe and life-threatening situations in their own communities. Two have already lost their lives. It has to stop.”
Wisconsin joins Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington in filing the amicus brief.
