The Justice Department inspector general announced Thursday that he was investigating allegations of use of force against federal law enforcement officers in Portland, Oregon, as well as his response to protesters in Washington, DC
Inspector General Michael Horowitz said he had opened the investigation into the much-criticized federal response to protests near government buildings in Portland in response to requests from Congress and a reference from the US attorney in Oregon.
Oregon’s attorney general sued the Department of Homeland Security over the federal response last week, alleging that officers dispatched to Portland to suppress the Black Lives Matter protests violated the Constitution by illegally arresting and arresting protesters without probable cause.
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Federal officials “have been using unmarked vehicles to drive through downtown Portland, detain protesters and place them in officers’ unmarked vehicles, removing them from the public without arresting them or declaring the basis for an arrest, since at least Tuesday, July 14, “said Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum’s lawsuit.
“The officers’ identities are not known, nor is their affiliation with the agency, according to videos and reports that the officers in question wear patched military uniforms simply by reading ‘POLICE’, without other identifying information,” the lawsuit continues. .
Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf has argued that officers have patches on their uniforms that tell what agency they are with, and denied that they have arrested people without probable cause. He said they have only targeted “violent protesters”, despite some video evidence to the contrary.
Horowitz said he is coordinating his investigation with the inspector general of Homeland Security.
Horowitz said he is also investigating the federal response against protesters in Washington, DC, even as law enforcement officers used force to clear Lafayette Square minutes before an opportunity to take photos of President Donald Trump.
Horowitz said the reviews “will include examining the training and instruction provided to DOJ law enforcement personnel; compliance with applicable identification requirements, participation rules and legal authorities; and compliance with DOJ policies regarding the use of less lethal munitions, chemical agents, and other uses of force. “
CORRECTION (July 27, 2020, 9:40 p.m. ET): An earlier version of this article erroneously expressed the organizational status of the Department of Homeland Security inspector general. His office is part of the Department of Homeland Security, not the Department of Justice.
