Nine progressive prosecutors from cities around the country are launching a coalition to assist in prosecuting federal law enforcement officers who violate state laws, one of the prosecutors, Larry Krasner in Philadelphia, said on Tuesday.
The organization, which is called the Project for the Fight Against Federal Overreach, will also include Mary Moriarty, the elected prosecutor in Minneapolis. Its acronym, F.A.F.O., references a slang term for negative consequences, and its formation was spurred by “growing concerns about warrantless entries, unlawful detentions, and coercive enforcement tactics by federal agents,” according to a news release.
The handling of potentially criminal actions by federal agents has become a major issue in Minneapolis after two protesters, both U.S. citizens, were killed there this month by Department of Homeland Security officers.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation said it would not investigate the first killing, of Renee Good, a 37-year-old mother of three. She was killed in her S.U.V. on Jan. 7 as she appeared to be steering away from federal agents during a tense confrontation. Trump administration officials said that the officer who shot Ms. Good had been under attack and was acting in self-defense, and state investigators have been blocked from accessing evidence related to the episode.
After a second resident was killed — Alex Pretti, a Veteran Affairs nurse who was also 37 — federal officials initially appeared to use the same playbook. They blocked state investigators from the scene and declined to provide basic facts, like the identity of the agents involved. In both instances, bystander video contradicted key elements of the Trump administration’s account of what happened.
Facing a wave of criticism, President Trump on Tuesday promised a “very honorable and honest investigation” into Mr. Pretti’s death.
As videos and reports of ICE officers acting with aggressive force have flooded the country, a small but growing number of law enforcement officials have warned that they would arrest and prosecute federal officials who break their laws. One of the first to do so was the district attorney in San Francisco, Brooke Jenkins, after the president threatened to send National Guard troops there last October. In Minneapolis, protesters have demanded that the local police arrest ICE officers.
On Tuesday, John Choi, the top prosecutor in Ramsey County, which includes St. Paul, said his office was investigating reports of crimes by federal agents.
Trump administration officials say that ICE officers are making cities safer by removing criminals from the streets.
Normally, the F.B.I. and the Department of Justice’s Office of Civil Rights determine whether the use of deadly force by a federal agent was justified. State prosecutors also have the power to investigate and prosecute state crimes like murder, and they have often done so in cooperation with the federal government.
But that cooperation has broken down as Trump administration officials have denied that the federal agents committed any wrongdoing and accused Minnesota leaders of thwarting their immigration enforcement efforts and allowing fraud in federally funded programs.
After local officials were blocked from the investigations, Ms. Moriarty, the elected prosecutor for Hennepin County, resorted to opening a web portal to allow the public to submit evidence like cellphone videos. She has said that she expects to have enough evidence to decide whether to pursue charges in the two killings. Her office is also investigating a third incident in which a Venezuelan man was shot in the leg.
Prosecuting any police officer raises significant obstacles, since officers are authorized to use deadly force when they reasonably perceive a serious threat. The Constitution’s supremacy clause gives federal agents additional protection, though they do not have absolute immunity, as Vice President JD Vance initially claimed. They can ask for a federal court to shield them from prosecution if their actions were authorized under federal law, and if they can show that they did “no more than what was necessary and proper.”
Mr. Krasner said the new organization would provide “mutual support” to prosecutors who are “up against the might of the federal government.” So far, nine prosecutors from around the country have signed on.
“We are a very substantial tool against what I consider to be a pretty clear attempt to normalize fascism and to overthrow democracy in the United States,” he said.
Other locations whose elected prosecutors are participating include Austin; Dallas; Pima County in Arizona, which includes Tucson; and several cities in Virginia: Fairfax, Falls Church and Arlington, Portsmouth and Norfolk.
Shaila Dewan covers criminal justice — policing, courts and prisons — across the country. She has been a journalist for 25 years.
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