New Letter Urges Massachusetts Attorney General and District Attorneys to Launch Criminal Investigations into Unlawful Assaults, Detentions, and Political Retaliation by Federal Agents Against Massachusetts Residents

BOSTON, MA — Free Speech For People, a national nonpartisan legal advocacy organization, today submitted a letter urging Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell and the District Attorneys of Suffolk, Middlesex, Essex and Worcester Counties to open criminal investigations into the unlawful actions of federal agents operating in Massachusetts.

The submission details a consistent pattern of criminal activity by federal agents across Massachusetts since May 2025, including unlawful detentions, violent assaults, kidnappings, and racially motivated targeting of communities of color, as part of the Trump Administration’s so-called “Patriot” operations. Free Speech For People’s letter alleges that these acts were part of a coordinated criminal conspiracy directed by President Donald Trump and senior administration officials, intended not to enforce federal law but to punish and terrorize immigrants and political opponents.

“Federal agents are not enforcing the law, they are punishing President Trump’s perceived political enemies,” said Courtney Hostetler, Legal Director for Free Speech For People. “The President is using federal agents as his private army to detain and kidnap residents and terrorize communities. Massachusetts officials must protect the state’s residents.”

Announced by the Department of Homeland Security in May and September, 2025, “Patriot 1.0” and “Patriot 2.0” were purportedly aimed at apprehending gang-affiliated noncitizens. Yet public evidence, including Trump’s own remarks, shows that the operation’s true intent was to “brutalize, terrorize, and intimidate” residents of Massachusetts.

Federal agents engaged in a series of violent and unlawful actions, including:

• Detaining individuals, including minors, without cause;
• Using excessive force against residents and citizens in the course of immigration arrests, including assaulting residents, smashing car windows, and throwing residents to the ground;
• Raiding businesses without warrants or probable cause;
• Deporting individuals without due process;

The letter outlines numerous violations of Massachusetts criminal law, including assault and battery, assault and battery for the purpose of intimidation, as well as potential hate crimes and civil rights violations. It highlights that Supremacy Clause immunity does not protect federal agents who act outside lawful authority or engage in conduct they know to be unlawful. The letter also highlights that Trump himself cannot claim immunity for these unlawful actions since they do not qualify as official acts.

“Committing crimes is not part of a federal agent’s job duties,” said Ben Clements, Chairman and Senior Legal Advisor at Free Speech For People. “When the president or his subordinates order federal agents to commit crimes in Massachusetts to terrorize their political enemies, state and local prosecutors have a responsibility to protect Massachusetts residents and enforce state criminal law.”

Free Speech For People emphasizes that while federal prosecutors have been compromised by the administration’s own misconduct, state and local authorities retain independent jurisdiction to investigate and prosecute crimes committed within their borders.

“Given the federal government’s unwillingness to police itself, states are one of the only sources of accountability for residents who have been victimized by federal agents,” said Ben Horton, Counsel at Free Speech For People. “Massachusetts must act now to protect its communities and its laws from abuse.”

Read the letter to state and local prosecutors in Massachusetts here.