Everyone in our community deserves to be safe and secure.

In my day job as a child welfare attorney, we continue to support-plan for access to food, medical care, health care, documentation, legal counsel, court proceedings, and ultimately survival for the immigrant children and families we serve.

As a community, we continue to stand up for our neighbors and oppose Operation Metro Surge’s overreach. Neighbors continue to protect neighbors.  Parents are helping one another.  Community members continue to line up to volunteer for food drives, escorts, protests, and more.  I am inspired and awestruck by the love, bravery, spirit, and support we as Minnesotans provide for each other every day in these most challenging times.  This is our country too!

Operation Metro Surge’s impact on our state has also been profound. In January alone, ICE ignored at least 96 court orders in Minnesota. Two months later, we still don’t have justice for Renee Good and Alex Pretti. The tens of millions of dollars in economic damage done to our local businesses and families by Operation Metro Surge has also not been remedied. Making matters worse, some community members who were already struggling to make ends meet now face eviction because they could not work during ICE's occupation.

In the last few weeks, ICE has become more discreet in Minnesota. And yet, we know that ICE is still very active in our neighborhoods – with four times the pre-surge amount of ICE officers still patrolling our streets.

We still have so much work left to do! In addition to continuing to stand up for our neighbors, we also need to reform our laws to help ensure this never happens again.

As your state legislator, I will fight for the following reforms:

1. Require personal and agency identification for all law enforcement officers:  All law enforcement officers engaged in public enforcement must be identifiable both individually and by agency – wearing a visible uniform, ID, badge, and agency name.

2. Assert the necessity of judicial warrants in state and federal actions: Judicially-signed warrants or homeowner permission are required to enter private spaces including all homes and businesses.

3. Protect the constitutional right to protest: Our Constitution ensures our right to peacefully observe, record, communicate, and protest. We need to expand civil liability for any federal officers who violate our civil rights to engage in these actions.

4. Allow urgent access to medical care onsite: In any state or federal enforcement action where a person is in need of emergency medical care, all officers must immediately and safely provide for access for the person to emergency medical care.

5. Provide for notice, access, and medical care for detained persons: All persons detained by any law enforcement agency in Minnesota must be publicly identified within eight (8) hours of detention. The public identification of detention must include the location of detention, contact information for the detention facility, and means of access to the detained person. Any change in location for a detained person must be publicly identified at least 24 hours in advance of the change in detention location and include: contact information for the new detention facility and means of access to the detained person in the new detention facility. Any detention of persons in Minnesota must immediately provide to the detained person required medical care, sufficient food, clean water, appropriate bedding and toiletry care, access to cost-free phone calls for the detained person, and secure retention of any personal property of the detained person. Any release from detention must provide for the immediate return of the detained person’s personal property, access to cost-free phone calls for the detained person, and cost-free transportation for the detained person to the detained person’s home or to the place of original detention for the detained person. Any violation of these requirements may subject the detaining authority to civil liability and damages.

6. Provide for local oversight and BCA investigations: The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) and local jurisdiction officers shall have full access to all evidence to conduct investigations into all federal officer-involved shootings.

7. Restrict immigration access to schools and churches: In line with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security 2011 Sensitive Spaces Memorandum, repealed by the current administration, immigration officials shall not enter “sensitive locations” like schools and churches unless in extenuating circumstances.

Minnesotans have demonstrated incredible courage in the face of overwhelming force and intimidation over the last several months. Our state needs legislators to show the same amount of courage and leadership to help protect Minnesotans from continued federal overreach. I ask for your vote and your endorsement on April 11th to fight for these reforms, to stand up for our neighbors, and to help protect each other. Thank you for your time and consideration, and I would love to talk with you further about this or any other issue at any time as well!