Merkley, Salinas demand accountability for ICE, CBP agents

U.S Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, and Rep. Andrea Salinas, D-Oregon, on Feb. 13 highlighted their legislation aimed at holding federal immigration agents legally accountable for violating civil rights. Advocates and Oregonians joined them in Woodburn, describing what they called a growing pattern of abusive enforcement actions.

"Citizens can sue local or state police for violating their rights, but not federal agents," Merkley said. "That is fundamentally wrong and must change."

Known as the ICE and CBP Constitutional Accountability Act, the bill would create a cause of action against the federal government, allowing individuals to sue when a Customs and Border Protection or U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer violates their constitutional rights, such as due process or search-and-seizure protections. The bill also directs any damages awarded to be drawn from funds from the Big, Beautiful Bill Act, or H.R. 1.

Salinas described incidents that she said prompted the introduction of the bill, such as a 17-year-old U.S. citizen and student in McMinnville who was detained during his lunch break, and a Keizer wildland firefighter who was arrested while on duty fighting the Bear Gulch Fire on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington state.

Union SEIU 503 also said one of their members, who is a U.S. citizen identified only as Maria, was forcefully removed from her vehicle by ICE agents on Jan. 29, smashing her car window and injuring her.

Maria spoke about her experience through a statement read by Nancy Flores Lopez. She described being followed by an unmarked SUV in Salem, boxed in by two vehicles, and being thrown to the ground after agents had banged on her window, demanding "papers, papers." Maria said her window was "bashed in" and she was aggressively pulled out and thrown to the ground. She said her ribs were injured, she was concussed, and her rotator cuff was torn.

Agents left her on the street after they pulled out her passport from her purse and realized she was an American citizen, she said. Maria described remaining traumatized and fearful of driving around town.

Isa Peña, director of strategy at Innovation Law Lab, said some of the most significant ICE presence in Oregon in many years has been under this Trump administration. She said lawyers and advocates have seen "deeply troubling" reports of warrantless arrests, denial of access to counsel, racial profiling, the use of arrest quotas and high-tech surveillance in neighborhoods and more.

Innovation Law Lab has sued federal immigration authorities for their alleged repeated denial of access to counsel for detainees and for their use of warrantless arrests. A federal judge on Feb. 4 granted a motion to bar ICE agents from carrying out warrantless immigration arrests in Oregon unless agents first make specific, individualized assessments that a person poses a flight risk.

"This is not public safety, this is abuse of power, and when there are no consequences, these violations will continue," Salinas said.

Merkley and Salinas said negotiations in Congress are ongoing on a deal for Homeland Security funding. That deal, Merkley said, would need a series of reforms, including the type of accountability their bill calls for.

Merkley said he and Salinas are building "a lot of co-sponsors" to press forward.

"I think Republicans are starting to wake up, starting to understand this and that they should come to the table and help us accomplish reforming how we look at law enforcement at the federal level," Salinas said.

Also acknowledging reports that Oregon could be a target for future mass mobilization of ICE and CBP agents akin to the operation seen in Minnesota, Salinas said there had to be a "groundswell" from elected leaders at every level speaking up against the possibility.

"We don't know if those agents being drawn out of Minnesota are coming here, but we'd better prepare as if they are," Merkley added.