Le[e]gal Brief Episode 3: How To ‘Melt The ICE’
Welcome to episode three of Le[e]gal Brief with Lee Merritt, Esq. In the wake of the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by ICE agents in Minnesota, there have been growing questions about how to hold ICE accountable. This week’s episode focuses on ways the American court system can be utilized by the American public to “melt the ICE.”
Concerns about how ICE and Border Patrol were conducting themselves during their widespread immigration raids have been mounting even before the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. “Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers are being accused of intimidation, harassment, and violence,” Lee Merritt says in this week’s episode. “This has resulted in wrongful arrests, wrongful detentions, and even wrongful deaths in ICE custody.”
One of the go-to talking points by those who enjoy the taste of boot has been Obama-era immigration policies. It’s true that a large number of deportations happened during Barack Obama’s presidency. Over the course of his eight years in office, 56 people died while in ICE’s custody. In the first year of President Donald Trump’s second term, 32 people died in ICE custody.
Additionally, while Obama’s deportation efforts prioritized people with criminal histories and recent border crossers, ICE has no understandable methodology in its current immigration raids. There is no reason that an agency ostensibly focused on immigration enforcement should ever arrest a U.S. citizen, yet ICE agents have detained hundreds of American citizens over the last year.
With all that in mind, you’re probably reasonably concerned about the way ICE has been moving and the complete lack of accountability when it comes to wrongdoing. In the video, Merritt outlines the three tools that both U.S. citizens and foreigners can use to pushback against ICE violations. The Federal Torts Claim Act allows citizens to sue the federal government for wrongdoing by its agents. There’s also the Bivens Act, which provides a similar avenue, though its use has been greatly curtailed by the Supreme Court.
The third method is Section 1983 of the Civil Rights Act, which Merritt says is already being used to file cases against police officers who commit rights violations. Typically, this doesn’t apply to federal agents, but these are far from typical times. “When federal agents are jointly operating with police officers on a state level, then section 1983 could be used to hold in check ICE agents and other federal agents for violations of citizens’ rights,” Merritt explains.
Merritt goes on to explain that of all three methods, the Federal Torts Claim Act has been the most successful in holding federal agents accountable for wrongdoing.
This week’s Le[e]gal Brief also dives into the battle between federal power and states’ authority. We’re seeing this battle play out in Minnesota, where a federal judge is currently hearing a lawsuit filed by Minnesota officials against the federal government. The suit asks the judge to issue a temporary restraining order against the federal government, blocking it from conducting immigration enforcement in the state.
As the federal government continues to behave as if the nation’s laws don’t apply to them, it’s important to know your rights as a citizen and what legal avenues are available to you should those rights be violated. Stay tuned to Le[e]gal Brief with Lee Merritt to stay informed about how you can legally assert your rights in these incredibly unusual times.
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