Sept. 30 (UPI) — The Justice Department on Monday filed a lawsuit against so-called sanctuary policies in Minnesota as the Trump administration tries to have the court compel Democratic-led regions to abide by its immigration policies.
The lawsuit targets the laws of Minnesota, Hennepin County and the cities of St. Paul and Minneapolis, arguing that not only are they illegal, they effectively shield “criminal offenders” by obstructing federal law enforcement.
“Minnesota officials are jeopardizing the safety of their own citizens by allowing illegal aliens to circumvent the legal process,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement announcing the lawsuit.
“This Department of Justice will continue to bring litigation against any jurisdiction that uses sanctuary policies to defy federal law and undermine law enforcement.”
President Donald Trump, who campaigned on cracking down on immigration, often with the use of incendiary rhetoric and misinformation, has been attempting to conduct mass deportations, and has targeted Democratic-led jurisdictions’ refusal to cooperate with federal immigration authorities as part of that effort.
In April, he signed an executive order directing Bondi to compile a list of so-called sanctuary jurisdictions for punishment, with a list of 35 regions being made public early last month.
The Justice Department has already filed lawsuits against five states including Minnesota and several cities, including New York City, Los Angeles, Boston and Chicago. However, a federal judge dismissed the lawsuit against Illinois, Chicago and other districts in the state in late July, finding the Trump administration “lacked standing” to challenge the laws.
Minnesota is also led by Gov. Tim Walz, a critic of Trump and a rival of the president, having run against him as Kamala Harris’ vice presidential running mate on the Democratic ticket.
The state has been a target of numerous federal actions by the Trump administration, including investigations over its hiring practices. The president declined to call Walz after a man assassinated a state lawmaker and wounded another in mid-June, calling him “whacked out” and “a mess.”
Late last week, Minnesota was one of six states Trump sued to force handover of its voter registration list.
While Walz has yet to make a public statement about the latest lawsuit, Mayor Melvin Carter of Saint Paul said city employees work for those who live there and not Trump.
“We will stand with our immigrant and refugee neighbors no matter how many unconstitutional claims the White House makes,” he said in a statement.
“We’ve proven our resolve in two successful court actions already this year, and we look forward to winning our third legal victory in a row against this embarrassing federal regime.”
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey similarly said they would fight the Trump administration.
“We will not back down. We will fight with every bit of our strength for our immigrant communities. We will stand by our neighbors and we’re going to win in court,” he said in a recorded statement published on X.
“So, let’s just be really clear to everybody: this is not an issue where we will back down. We’re going to win this thing.”