Immigrant Defense Network Calls for Investigation After Firing of DHS Secretary Kristi Noem

MINNEAPOLIS – The Immigrant Defense Network is calling for a federal investigation into immigration enforcement practices following the dismissal of Kristi Noem as secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

In a statement released Thursday, the Minnesota-based advocacy group said Noem’s removal reflects “growing instability and failures” within federal immigration enforcement leadership but warned that her departure should not shield federal agencies from scrutiny over policies enacted during her tenure.

The organization criticized enforcement actions carried out by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, arguing that tactics expanded under Noem harmed immigrant communities nationwide, particularly in Minnesota.

Central to the group’s criticism is Operation Metro Surge, a federal enforcement initiative the Immigrant Defense Network described as one of the most damaging recent operations affecting local immigrant families. According to the group, the operation created widespread fear in affected neighborhoods and strained trust between residents and public institutions.

The organization also pointed to two deaths connected to enforcement actions linked to the operation: Alex Pretti and Renée Good. The group said the deaths illustrate the dangers of what it characterized as increasingly militarized immigration enforcement strategies.

Beyond those incidents, the Immigrant Defense Network cited broader concerns about conditions in federal immigration detention. The group said more than 73,000 people remain in immigration custody nationwide and that nearly 40 detainees died in detention facilities during Noem’s time leading the Department of Homeland Security.

“These deaths are not statistics,” the organization said in its statement, describing them as evidence of systemic failures within the immigration detention system.

The Immigrant Defense Network is urging federal officials to establish an independent, nonpartisan commission with authority to investigate alleged abuses tied to federal immigration enforcement, including Operation Metro Surge, deaths involving federal agents, and conditions in detention centers. The group also called for an independent review of the deaths of Pretti and Good.

In addition, the organization is advocating for an immediate halt to deportations and renewed efforts to pass comprehensive immigration reform that would create a pathway to citizenship, strengthen due process protections, and reduce reliance on enforcement-driven policies.

The group said communities in Minnesota and across the country continue to deal with the fallout from recent enforcement operations, citing family separations, economic hardship for immigrant-owned businesses, and declining trust in government institutions.

“Leadership changes at DHS will mean nothing if the policies and culture that allowed these abuses to occur remain intact,” the organization said.

The Immigrant Defense Network said it will continue to work with families and community members affected by enforcement actions as it presses for what it described as “truth, justice, and accountability.”