IJ attorney McClain condemns DHS construction-site raids as the lawsuit is filed
Senior Attorney, Institute for Justice, counsel for Leo Garcia Venegas
“Armed and masked federal officers are raiding private construction sites in Alabama, detaining whoever they think looks undocumented”
Source and context
Official statement
About this source
Institute for Justice's own press release announcing the filing of Venegas v. Homan, with details of the two pre-filing detentions and quotes from Venegas and IJ attorney Jared McClain.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
Announcing the filing of Venegas v. Homan on behalf of Leo Garcia Venegas, the Institute for Justice detailed two prior warrantless detentions of Venegas despite his valid REAL ID.
After the quotation
McClain said the lawsuit sought to end DHS's dragnet enforcement approach and require officers to have individualized suspicion before detaining anyone at a construction site.
How this statement is classified
Case context: Did DHS violate the Fourth Amendment with warrantless immigration raids on Alabama construction sites?
The label describes this statement’s response within the context above.
Why this label?
McClain's statement directly condemns DHS's construction-site raid and detention practices as the product of profiling by appearance rather than lawful, individualized suspicion — the conduct under scrutiny in this case.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Did DHS violate the Fourth Amendment with warrantless immigration raids on Alabama construction sites?
Explore the case context, sources and public responses.
More from this case
Read the full case“Americans cannot be stopped and held by law enforcement when they are doing nothing wrong. I'm glad my case is moving forward, and I hope it can make lasting change.”Read statement
“DHS law enforcement uses 'reasonable suspicion' to make arrests. What makes someone a target for immigration enforcement is if they are illegally in the U.S. — NOT their skin color, race, or ethnicity.”Read statement