MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
In Minnesota, a federal judge threw out grand jury subpoenas from the Trump administration.
A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
The judge said the subpoenas were used to harass, coerce and retaliate against Minnesota officials who did not cooperate with the federal government's immigration policies.
MARTIN: Minnesota Public Radio's Jon Collins is with us now to tell us more about it. Good morning.
JON COLLINS, BYLINE: Good morning.
MARTIN: So the federal government issued six subpoenas. What did the government say they were looking for?
COLLINS: So they were looking for answers from some longtime opponents, including Governor Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison, as well as the mayors of Minneapolis and St. Paul, and the counties where they're located. And the subpoenas came down during the height of the ICE surge into Minnesota, and that's where thousands were arrested and two American citizens were shot to death by federal agents. But essentially, the subpoenas were aimed at getting these Minnesota officials to hand over any information about their response to the federal government's immigration surge in Minnesota.
MARTIN: And what did the judge say in throwing them out?
COLLINS: The judge sided with Minnesota state and city officials who argued that these subpoenas violated their 10th Amendment rights, which says the federal government can't use its powers to compel or harass local governments into adopting certain federal policies. And that's exactly what the judge appears to think the Trump administration was trying to do here. And the judge in this case, Patrick Schiltz, noted the context that these subpoenas occurred in. They were issued right as President Trump threatened retribution against the state and at a time when top officials in the Trump administration were also publicly pushing the state to cooperate more closely with federal immigration efforts or to face the consequences.
MARTIN: And what - did the judge say any more about how he came to this conclusion that the federal government overstepped its authority here?
COLLINS: The judge said harassing local and state officials is not an appropriate use of grand jury subpoenas. It's a misuse of a very powerful tool. But Judge Schiltz also said the federal government's assertion that these incredibly broad subpoenas had any clear purpose in a criminal investigation was absurd. He said none of the federal government's examples it cited justified the subpoenas. And he said it's clear that the goal of the subpoenas was instead to coerce Minnesota officials into assisting with the enforcement of federal civil immigration law and to harass and retaliate against them for failing to do so.
MARTIN: Have the Minnesota authorities responded to this?
COLLINS: Governor Tim Walz released a statement saying the decision is a, quote, "victory for the rule of law and our democracy." And Walz said the use of grand jury subpoenas was just one more example of this federal administration's lawlessness. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said it was a vindication of free speech, and he said criticizing the government is not a crime.
MARTIN: Is the federal government responding? And what - if you know, what could be next here?
COLLINS: The U.S. Department of Justice sent me a brief statement saying it takes the unlawful obstruction of federal law seriously and that it will continue to investigate. The judge here also took the step of saying he plans to unseal the grand jury testimony that led to these subpoenas, which is typically secret. He's given the federal government time to challenge it, but he said there's both a public interest and an interest by local governments in having these grand jury documents unsealed, and that could happen as soon as next month.
MARTIN: Well, there's actually some extraordinary developments there. That is Jon Collins of Minnesota Public Radio. Jon, thank you.
COLLINS: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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