It is really a simple concept: the people who enforce the law must follow the law. I believe that most Americans feel that way. The principle is not controversial. It is not partisan. It is the very foundation of public trust. When an officer pulls someone over, knocks on a door, or makes an arrest, the legitimacy of that action depends on the belief that the officer is acting within the law and not above it. In recent years, a troubling pattern has emerged involving Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Across the country, journalists, civil rights groups, and even federal judges have documented cases in which ICE agents have violated constitutional rights, ignored established procedures, or used force in ways that raise serious legal questions. These incidents are not just isolated to Minnesota. They are happening all over the country, and the pattern demands investigation. I don’t argue against immigration enforcement. Most favor immigration enforcement. The basic issue is accountability. When the people empowered to enforce the law break the law, the damage it spreads is far beyond any single case. It undermines the rule of law itself. The pattern of violations can’t be ignored.

One of the most alarming trends involves ICE detaining people who are U.S. citizens. In Minneapolis, agents pulled a Hmong American grandfather out of his home, in his underwear, in freezing weather, during a Minneapolis sweep. They detained and zip-tied a father who was a U.S. citizen, accusing him of being here illegally just because of his accent. These actions violate constitutional protections against unreasonable seizures and may actually violate ICE’s own determined protocols. ICE agents have arrested and deported U.S. citizens, according to legal accountability experts. There have been over 170 detentions of U.S. citizens. Most happened because of racial profiling on race, accent, or paperwork errors. ICE promotes rapid removals to prevent legal review. That is why we are supposed to have Due Process so errors like this don’t happen. Not all wrongful detention has resulted in deportation, but deportation documentation shows that citizens have, in fact, been removed from the United States by ICE.

ICE has used excessive force and reckless conduct, as we have seen on numerous recordings and reports that have been posted on social media and in the news. These actions violate federal standards. Agents have brandished weapons at unarmed children and have used unnecessary force on elected officials. They are also engaged in reckless pursuits that have caused crashes. These are not just a violation of policy. They can be violations of state criminal law. If you or I pointed a gun at children or caused a crash through reckless driving, we would face consequences. No law enforcement officer including ICE, should be exempt from those same standards of accountability.

Two deaths in particular have drawn attention to ICE’s fatal use of force. Renee Good and Alex Pretti, both U.S. citizens, were fatally shot by ICE agents in Minneapolis. Civil rights groups argue that the shootings were unjustified and avoidable. Most of us have seen the videos over and over again, and some have actually compared them to the George Floyd murder by the police. Images like that are images that we should never forget. To me, both shootings were unjustified and should never have happened. You can’t help but call it murder. If you and I had done something like that, we would have been arrested and charged with murder. So why did the same not happen to the ICE agents who did those two shootings? Instead, the Federal Government whisked them out of state to escape accountability. These killings deserve a transparent investigation. If the shootings are found to be unjustified, which I believe that they would be, the officers should face the same consequences as anyone else.

Illegal stops, questioning, and racial profiling should never happen. In several cities ICE has been accused of stopping and questioning residents without reasonable suspicion, often targeting people based on race or perceived immigration status. This is unconstitutional policing, which the Supreme Court has been clear about: law enforcement cannot stop someone based solely on appearance or ethnicity. When ICE ignores this standard, it is not enforcing the law. They are violating it. The same with warrantless home entries. Ice has been entering people's homes without judicial warrants. They have what they call an administrative warrant, which is not signed by a judge and does not authorize entrance.  This practice helps agents use deception and intimidation, or force to enter private residences. The Constitution is straightforward; entering a home without a judicial warrant or freely given consent is a direct violation of the Constitution. When ICE agents violate these rules, they are not acting as law enforcement. They are acting like lawbreakers.

People may be tempted to dismiss these incidents as problems that only affect immigrants. That view misses the larger danger. When a federal agency operates without accountability, everyone is at risk. If ICE can detain a U.S. citizen, what stops other agencies from doing the same thing? If ICE doesn’t need a warrant, why would other agencies need them? If ICE can use deadly force without consequences, what kind of message does that send to other law enforcement agencies? The rule of law is not self-enforcing. It depends on institutions respecting the limits and on a public that demands accountability when those limits are crossed.

There is a simple concept that I think we can all agree on. A government agency or office cannot claim to uphold the law while breaking it. When ICE agents violate constitutional rights, they are not just targeting the individuals, but they are also targeting the Constitution itself. It sends a message that some communities, such as immigrants, Blacks, Asians, or Latinos, are not protected by the Constitution and the law as everyone else. That is not how a constitutional democracy works. Accountability is not anti-law enforcement. It is the foundation of legitimate law enforcement. We need investigations and the courts to determine that ICE agents broke the law, and the consequences should match the same severity as they would for any other person. For unlawful detention and unconstitutional stops, we should file criminal charges for unlawful restraint or deprivation of rights, seek civil liability for damages, and seek termination and loss of federal law enforcement certification. For excessive force or reckless conduct, there should be assault or battery charges under state law and federal civil rights charges. For fatal shootings, there must be an investigation that takes place where the shooting occurred. If it is unjustified, then state homicide charges must be filed, and a federal civil rights prosecution for deprivation of rights under the law. For Illegal home entries, there should be criminal trespass charges and civil rights lawsuits. For racial profiling, there must be civil rights violations under federal law. We must also ensure that these people never work in law enforcement again, because they surely do not believe in the law.

The United States cannot function if the people enforcing the law are allowed to ignore the law. Accountability is not optional if you want to ensure the public trust, protect constitutional rights, and maintain the legitimacy and faith in the Department of Justice. Equal justice under the law means exactly that, EQUAL.