Democrats propose giving people right to sue federal officers

Audio By Carbonatix

(The Center Square) – Two U.S. Senators proposed a new bill that would allow people to sue federal officers for constitutional violations, regardless of their citizenship status, amid a federal crackdown on illegal immigration.

U.S. Sens. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., introduced the Accountability for Federal Law Enforcement Act to give people, regardless of citizenship, the right to sue federal law enforcement officers and agencies in civil court for violations of their civil and constitutional rights. Padilla has been attempting to get the measure passed since 2021, but said it has taken on new importance amid immigration crackdowns led by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection.

"For months, ICE and CBP officers have terrorized communities across the country, deploying violent and excessive tactics against immigrants, U.S. citizens, journalists, and bystanders alike with no accountability. These abuses of individuals' constitutional rights without consequence shatter public trust and stoke fear among hardworking members of our communities," Padilla said in a statement. "By ensuring every individual, regardless of citizenship, can sue federal law enforcement when their constitutional rights are violated, this bill reaffirms that the rule of law applies equally to all – including those who enforce it."

Under existing law, people can sue state and local officers for constitutional violations, but not federal officers. The Supreme Court's decision in Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents allowed some lawsuits against federal officers, but Padilla said courts have narrowed that ruling, leaving little room for recourse.

"This legislation is immediately necessary – to hold officers and agencies accountable for violations of civil rights, and to prevent these kinds of violent abuses in the future," Blumenthal said in a statement.

Sens. Cory Booker, D-N.J., Edward Markey, D-Mass., Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., cosponsored the measure. The bill also has the backing of the American Civil Liberties Union and Brennan Center.

The bill would create a statutory right of action allowing people to seek damages for civil rights violations committed by federal law enforcement officers. It would also allow suits against federal agencies if their employees violate constitutional rights, regardless of whether an agency policy caused the harm, and waiving sovereign immunity for such claims, but it would retain existing defenses for officers, leaving the qualified immunity doctrine unchanged.