This year there is a race to the bottom as Democratic politicians stoke the anger in our streets against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials. That continued when Minnesota Governor Tim Walz again rushed his judgment after a shooting, adding that the public should not treat Border Patrol or ICE agents as true “law enforcement.” However, the low point was ultimately reached by Arizona’s Democratic Attorney General Kris Mayes, who not only said she does not consider ICE agents “real law enforcement officers” but also raised the possibility that civilians could shoot them under state law.
First, the obvious. Mayes said, “I put [“officers”] These are real law enforcement officers under federal law, enforcing federal law. Point. The attempt by Walz, Mayes and others to question their status or treat them as impostors is clearly intended to incite citizens and encourage greater confrontation. It is a dangerous form of demagoguery. It endangers citizens and encourages them to hinder federal operations that arrest criminal suspects.
Mayes later stated that she was “mischaracterized” and that “the idea that I would want the lives of any member of law enforcement to be endangered is wrong, offensive and an outright lie.” Mayes’ “mischaracterizations” came at a time of growing unrest and the attorney general rushed to add to the reckless rhetoric.
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Once again, she repeated Walz’s talking points, calling these officers “poorly trained.” She clearly has no idea about the training of these officers. The officer involved in the shooting of Alex Pretti was a veteran Border Patrol officer. The officer involved in the earlier shooting of Renée Good was also a veteran officer.
Although they mischaracterize the officers, figures like Walz arguably send “untrained” civilians into very dangerous situations. Walz specifically called on citizens to take to the streets to document these operations, which is exactly what Pretti tried to do before his fatal confrontation with officers.
However, Mayes wasn’t looking for a draw in that race to the bottom. She told citizens that Arizona’s “Stand Your Ground” law could be cited as a reason for using deadly force against officers. She stated:
“You have masked federal agents with very little identification – sometimes no identification – wearing plain clothes and masks and we have a ‘Stand Your Ground’ law that says if you reasonably believe your life is in danger, and you are in your home, in your car or on your property, you can defend yourself with deadly force.”
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She later added, “The fact is that we have a ‘Stand Your Ground’ law and, in other states, non-uniformed, masked people who cannot be identified as police officers.”
It was a reckless statement of the law. These laws only protect “reasonable” uses of self-defense. However, they have an express exception for the use of force “to resist an arrest which the person knows or should know is being made by a peace officer or by a person acting in the presence and at his direction of a peace officer, whether the arrest is lawful or unlawful, unless the physical force used by the peace officer exceeds that authorized by law.”
It is not uncommon for law enforcement officers to use plainclothes officers to make initial arrests or when coming into contact with suspects who might flee or resist.
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Mayes’ comments could embolden an already angry and irrational segment of our population to use lethal force under the false pretense of holding their ground.
The attacks on these officers have increased exponentially due to the violent rhetoric of these politicians. Just last week, a rioter bit off an officer’s finger.
Mayes also vowed to prosecute any ICE agent who violates state laws in these operations. She also imitates Walz in spreading legal disinformation. Although federal officials do not enjoy absolute immunity in all cases, it is extremely unlikely that state officials can successfully prosecute such cases without being transferred to federal court and likely dismissed.
Walz made the same misleading claim, saying that Minnesota would investigate the shooting and that the federal government would not be allowed to conduct the investigation. He has no authority to determine who or how the shooting will be investigated.
While the state can conduct its own investigation, the federal government will investigate a shooting by a federal officer. Walz further pandered to the crowd by pushing the debunked “bait boy” story and telling citizens that ICE “shot them in the face when they came out of donut shops.”
The anger has been difficult to sustain for months, and the Pretti shooting, as described by a Democratic operative according to Fox’s Chad Pergram, is a “new wild card” in politics on the Hill over funding.
Legitimate questions remain about this shooting. The videotapes do not show, as early federal government reports suggested, Pretti approaching the officers while brandishing a weapon.
Pretti disobeys the officers’ orders as they return to the middle of the road during their operation. However, he only appeared threatening after the officer pushed him to the side of the road. At one point he appears to shove the officer as he tries to help a woman who was pushed to the ground.
What happens next is difficult to determine. There is video suggesting an officer may have unholstered his weapon just before another officer yells “gun.” It’s hard to see Pretti’s hands, and we don’t know what happened in that split second. We may get a better idea when new video tapes appear.
Law enforcement officers do not expect blind deference during shootings. However, they have a right to expect that an investigation will get a fair chance to hear their side of the shooting — and not from a governor or a mayor rushing in front of the cameras to effectively accuse them of murder.
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At this point it might not matter. Only the crowd matters. Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara explained, “Even if there is an investigation that ultimately proves it was legally justified at the time of the shooting, I don’t think that even matters at this point because there’s just so much outrage and concern about what’s happening in the city.”
Walz has displayed politics of the lowest kind and stoked anger as both civilians and officers were injured. Walz vows to go to court to halt further operations – a lawsuit that would be another frivolous proceeding. Previously, the state, including Attorney General Keith Ellison, filed a complaint to prevent the federal government from increasing its powers to investigate fraud and immigration violations.
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Walz, Maye and others follow a long line of demagogues who sought to use social unrest to advance their political careers. For Walz, sending people out onto the streets has the advantage of not having to sit at home watching and reading about the growing fraud scandal in his state.
It is not a defense of democracy, but a “mobocracy” in Minnesota.
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