1. United States
2. Va.
3. Letter

I am writing to urge Virginia to follow New York's lead by establishing a state-organized legal observer program to monitor federal immigration enforcement operations within our Commonwealth. New York Attorney General Letitia James announced this week the creation of a team of trained legal observers from her office who will wear purple vests and document whether immigration enforcement remains within the bounds of the law. This initiative responds to weeks of violent escalation in Minneapolis, where the Trump administration deployed thousands of armed, masked agents. The situation there has resulted in tragedy, with immigration agents fatally shooting two US citizens in January, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, who came out to protest or observe enforcement actions. Minnesota's leaders have accused the Trump administration of violating constitutional rights of both migrants and US citizens, including their rights to observe and protest government actions. The federal operations escalated rapidly without transparency or accountability. Trump has focused his most aggressive immigration enforcement surges on states governed by political opponents, particularly California, Illinois, and Minnesota. Virginia residents deserve the same constitutional protections that New York is now providing. A formal state-organized observer program would protect Virginians' rights to speak freely, protest peacefully, and live without fear of unlawful federal action. These trained observers would document enforcement activities without interfering, providing critical information to determine whether legal challenges are warranted. While small groups of legal observers are common at protests, a formal state effort to monitor federal law enforcement appears unprecedented and necessary given current circumstances. I urge you to work with the Attorney General's office to establish a similar program in Virginia before aggressive enforcement operations potentially arrive here. Our constitutional rights and public safety depend on transparency and accountability in federal law enforcement actions.