Hennepin County prosecutors press feds for evidence in shootings
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State investigators are demanding more evidence from the federal government in the shootings of Alex Pretti and Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, as they weigh bringing criminal charges against the federal agents involved.
Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty announced Wednesday that she filed Touhy demands in those cases — formal requests to review photos, videos and other evidence that federal investigators collected at the shooting scenes. She’s also asking for the names of the agents involved.
“Hiding evidence and obstructing our investigation is unacceptable, and it indicates a total lack of confidence in their agents’ own actions,” Moriarty said.
The Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice have a March 3 deadline to respond. But so far, the federal government hasn’t complied with these demands for information.
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Moriarty previously submitted requests for evidence in the shooting of Renee Macklin Good. The deadline for that request was Tuesday; Moriarty said the federal government did not hand over the requested evidence.
Moriarty said her office is considering more legal options if the federal government continues to ignore the Touhy requests, including suing in federal court.
So far, the federal government has kept Minnesota law enforcement shut out of those investigations, as state and local leaders call for cooperation. This week, leaders of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension said the FBI officially notified the state that it won’t share its evidence in the Pretti shooting.
In the shooting of Sosa-Celis, who was shot and injured by a federal agent in north Minneapolis, federal authorities say they’re investigating whether two immigration officers lied under oath. They had said they were attacked with a shovel and a broomstick, and Sosa-Celis and another man were charged with assaulting federal officers. But new evidence disputes that claim. A federal judge also ordered the charges dropped.
The two agents are on administrative leave while the investigation continues.
The state is continuing its own investigations into the shootings despite lacking some evidence from the scenes. Moriarty said Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension investigators are interviewing witnesses.
Her office, in collaboration with Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, has an online portal asking the public to submit videos and information about the shootings of Pretti and Good. Moriarty said a team is reviewing more than 1,000 submissions to that portal.
Moriarty said that information is likely enough for the office to make charging decisions in those cases.
“I can't say what that will be, and certainly it would be much easier if the federal government were not hiding evidence from us and obstructing our ability to do the investigation,” Moriarty said.
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