By Steve Neavling
A coalition of advocacy groups filed a federal lawsuit Thursday to stop the Department of Homeland Security from dismantling its internal oversight offices, which have been effectively shut down after the Trump administration eliminated key staff positions, The New York Times reports.
Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights and two immigration groups filed the complaint in Washington, D.C., arguing the closures violate laws passed by Congress to ensure civil rights protections and agency accountability. The groups are seeking to reinstate the Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL) and two ombudsman offices that monitor detention centers and handle visa-related complaints.
“These offices have obstructed immigration enforcement by adding bureaucratic hurdles,” DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in defense of the staffing cuts, calling them part of a broader efficiency effort.
But the lawsuit contends the Trump administration deliberately targeted internal safeguards, removing limits on immigration enforcement and ignoring statutory mandates. A letter from two Senate Democrats warned that gutting the CRCL would “jeopardize DHS’s ability to comply with statutory requirements and to protect the civil rights and civil liberties of the American people.”
Public Citizen is representing the plaintiffs in the case, which cites reports that detainees with serious medical conditions were denied care and visa applicants were left without case updates after the offices lost more than 97% of their staff.
The lawsuit asks the court to reinstate the positions and declare the staffing cuts illegal.
