The rise in federal prosecutions during the Trump administration over alleged attacks or interference with law enforcement and immigration officers has highlighted the tension between enforcement priorities and judicial outcomes.
The Trump administration has brought criminal charges against at least 851 people accused of attacking or impeding federal officers, only to abandon them at an unusually high rate.
According to records compiled by the Federal Judicial Center, 31% of these cases that have been completed so far have ended in dismissal which compares to 8% of all federal criminal cases that typically end in dismissal.
As reported, many of the charges stemmed from the administration’s aggressive immigration push, but the cases also included assaults on other federal employees, such as postal workers.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said its leadership has made clear that “anyone who assaults or obstructs law enforcement will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
Justice Department spokesperson Kiersten Pels said prosecutors should hold people accountable for such assaults, but “if there are mitigating factors identified in a case, then prosecutors must also act appropriately to inform the court, and in some cases downgrade or drop charges.”
