Attorney General Ellison launched a form on a website where Minnesotans can report on impacts of the federal actions in the state.
Residents can report on incidents that have impacted them or those close to them or things they have witnessed, according to the state Attorney General’s Office.
“These incident reports may be critical in supporting Attorney General’s Office actions defending and enforcing Minnesota’s laws and defending the State of Minnesota against actions that violate the State’s rights under the Constitution and applicable federal law,” according to a statement from the office.
The form can be accessed at ag.state.mn.us/Federal-Action.
President Donald Trump’s administration has significantly boosted immigration enforcement in Minnesota in recent weeks. Last week, Secretary of Homeland Security Krist Noem announced her agency would be sending 2,000 federal agents to the Twin Cities for enforcement actions.
According to the Attorney General’s Office incidents that can be reported include “violations of constitutional rights (racial profiling, excessive force, retaliation against protestors, observers, and media), business closures, reduced healthcare access, reduced education access, other issues impacting public safety and civil liberties, federal funding cuts, federal grant terminations, terms and conditions tied to federal program participation, other administrative actions by federal agencies.”
Ellison said the presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and other federal law enforcement groups “has done tremendous harm to the people of Minnesota.”
“I urge those who have personally experienced or directly witnessed that harm to share their stories with my office,” Ellison said in a statement. “What’s most useful to my office right now are experiences that are specific and as detailed and direct as possible. In order to highlight certain impacts in Court, we may need to speak with eyewitnesses or those directly involved, rather than just collecting stories you have heard secondhand. My team and I will use these stories and experiences to assist in our ongoing fight to end the federal surge in Minnesota and the chaos, pain, and violence it has caused.”
Submissions may be used in the state’s ongoing lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security seeking to end Operation Metro Surge.
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The office is asking that those submitting reports “not share rumors, media reports, secondhand information they cannot verify, or social media posts documenting experiences they did not witness or personally experience.”
Furthermore, the Attorney General’s Office noted in its statement that it can’t provide legal representation for those in immigration-related matters or provide references for private attorneys who do so, so the office also asks individuals not submit such requests.
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