The ranking Democratic members of two congressional oversight committees announced on Monday that they had started an investigation into reports of misconduct by federal agents during immigration arrests across the country, focusing on the detainment of American citizens.
The start of the investigation comes as immigration raids continue across the United States, with a focus on Democratic-led cities with sanctuary policies, such as Los Angeles and Chicago.
The raids have drawn criticism and prompted demonstrations from protesters who have said that some of the arrests have been overly aggressive.
They sent a letter on Monday to Kristi Noem, the homeland security secretary, asking for several pieces of information, including how many American citizens were detained by agencies under her control this year.
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On Monday, the ranking Democratic members of two congressional oversight committees said they had begun looking into allegations of misconduct by federal agents during nationwide immigration arrests, with a particular focus on the detention of U.S. citizens.
The House Oversight Committee and Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations are working together to conduct the investigation, which will ask whether American citizens were permitted to call a lawyer and how long they have been detained.
Rep. Robert Garcia, a Democrat who represents part of Los Angeles County and is the ranking member of the House Oversight Committee, announced Monday that all reports of “brutal misconduct” by immigration officials in Los Angeles would be examined by the investigation.
The investigation was launched as immigration raids continue throughout the United States, with a particular emphasis on Democratic-led cities like Los Angeles and Chicago that have sanctuary policies. Protesters who claim that some of the arrests have been unduly forceful have criticized the raids and called for protests.
Mr. Without the backing of a majority of Republicans, Garcia and Senator Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut and the ranking member of the Senate subcommittee, are able to launch an investigation on their own but are unable to subpoena anyone. They requested a number of details in a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Monday, including the number of Americans who were detained by her agencies this year.
During a press conference on Monday to support the investigation, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass expressed her alarm over reports that federal immigration officials had detained citizens. Reports indicating that legal immigrants had also been detained also worried her.
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