Minnesota clergy sue Trump for blocking detainee access to pastoral care

MINNEAPOLIS (CN) — A coalition of Minnesota faith leaders sued the Trump administration for barring them from providing detainees with spiritual care at a state holding facility.

In a 26-page complaint filed in federal court Monday, religious leaders claim the Department of Homeland Security has imposed a “profound and unjustified” burden on religious exercise for those who need it most, and that it is their responsibility to minister to and provide services for people often isolated from pastoral and legal services.

“The ability to provide pastoral care ensures that even in the most dire legal processes that could result in deportation or prolonged detention, individuals are treated with dignity and humanity, not as mere inventory,” the coalition says in its complaint.

The plaintiffs say they have, on many occasions, been turned away before even reaching the parking lot of the Bishop Henry Whipple federal building — where thousands of immigrants have been held since Operation Metro Surge began in December.

“Whipple, named for Minnesota’s first Episcopal bishop and a prominent 19th-century advocate for the rights of non-citizens, has become the epicenter of systematic deprivation of fundamental constitutional and legal rights by the federal government," the coalition says, adding that prayer vigils had been held regularly at the building since 2018.

The coalition includes the Minneapolis Area Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, the Minnesota Conference of the United Church of Christ, and Father Christopher Collins, a Jesuit and parochial administrator of the St. Peter Claver Catholic Church in St. Paul.

The plaintiffs say Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Acting Director Todd Lyons and other federal officials and agencies are violating the free exercise clause of the First Amendment and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act by blocking what should be unrestricted worship.

Most notably, the plaintiffs cites the federal government's decision to deny access to detainees on Ash Wednesday. While a federal judge in Illinois recently ordered ICE to allow communion at a Chicago detention facility, religious leaders in Minnesota were barred from the facility.

Those who attempted to enter the Whipple building on Ash Wednesday were turned away for unspecified safety and security reasons — even though many processing and detention facilities across the country provide protocols for clergy to follow to provide pastoral care.

“Receiving ashes at one’s darkest hour — such as in detention in horrendous conditions — is essential to practicing the Christian faith and is an essential pastoral obligation," the coalition says in the complaint.

The faith leaders say the government also barred entry because the Whipple building is a "processing facility," and detainees are typically only held for a short time.

Much like a related lawsuit challenging the blocking of legal counsel for detainees in the same building, clergy members say a facility's designation does not justify constitutional violations — adding that many religious leaders are aware of detainees being held for far longer than a short time.

“Even brief detention does not diminish the urgent need for spiritual care, particularly when detainees may be transferred without notice," the coalition says in the complaint.

And the Trump administration's religious violations aren't limited to the Whipple building, with the plaintiffs detailing multiple instances of ICE vehicles circling churches to arrest churchgoers, pastors being pepper sprayed while protesting, and a Catholic church in Pelican Rapids canceling a Sunday mass due to fear of ICE activity.

Minnesota churches have become increasingly intertwined with the federal immigration surge. This tension surfaced most notably on Jan. 18, when demonstrators interrupted a service led by Pastor David Easterwood — also ICE's acting field director in St. Paul. Protesters and journalists covering the event, including former CNN anchor Don Lemon, are now facing federal charges.

The plaintiffs also note in their complaint the 99 clergy members who were protesting against the ICE surge at the Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport on Jan. 23.

Despite the Trump administration's Feb. 12 announcement ending Operation Metro Surge, clergy members said there has been no change in their ability to provide pastoral care at the Whipple building.

The coalition seeks an injunction that permits in-person pastoral visits to detainees, and for the government to establish a clear, predictable process for scheduling visits.