The fallout continues in Minnesota weeks after the deadly shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good by federal immigration officers, as at least eight additional federal prosecutors are resigning. The departures come on top of six others who have stepped down in recent weeks amid frustration with the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.
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Some of the attorneys have said they are being stretched thin due to heavy caseloads. The U.S. attorney for the District of Minnesota said in a court filing last week that in January alone there were about 400 new cases involving people challenging their detention by federal immigration officials. The surge follows an increase in immigration enforcement in Minnesota, which has sparked widespread protests and calls for federal officials to leave the state.
Earlier this week, attorney Julie Le expressed her frustration in court over the workload. She said she wanted to resign but is unable to because no one wants to take her place.
"... sometime[s] I wish you would just hold me in contempt, Your Honor, so that I can have a full 24 hours of sleep," Le said. "I work days and night just because people [are] still in there. And, yes, procedure in place right now sucks."
"And I am here with you, Your Honor. What do you want me to do? The system sucks. This job sucks," she added. "And I am trying every breath that I have so that I can get you what you need."
After that exchange, Le was removed from her position. Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin issued a statement calling her conduct “unprofessional and unbecoming.”
Meanwhile, social media posts by government attorneys and officials are seeking people interested in becoming U.S. attorneys, who represent the federal government in court. In one instance, a former federal official urged people to message him directly if interested — a request re-posted by U.S. Homeland Security Adviser Stephen Miller.
“The Justice Department has a lot of work to do across a range of legal areas from anti-trust to anti-terrorism, national security and environmental crimes, et cetera,” said Greg Nunziata, executive director for the Society for the Rule of Law. “And losing the kind of professionals who do some of this work, and some of these practices are really specialized, the kind of work that you wouldn’t be exposed to in the private sector, and it’s hard to hire for those expertise.”
