Sidebar: Armed with impunity

As immigration enforcement intensifies, so do questions about the limits of federal power. In our third episode this season, we unpack the legal maze surrounding federal law enforcement and the steep uphill battle for victims who want to hold agents accountable for constitutional violations.

We trace the roots of the civil rights law Section 1983 and Bivens, which once gave citizens a path to sue federal officers. But decades of court decisions have narrowed those paths dramatically. When national security and policy discretion enter the picture, do they become shields for misconduct?

Today, many victims are trapped in a legal black hole, where federal agents are often harder to sue than their state or local counterparts.

Special guests:

• Mike Fox, legal fellow at the Cato Institute’s Project on Criminal Justice
• Marie Miller, attorney with the Institute for Justice
• Anya Bidwell, attorney with the Institute for Justice

Sidebar tackles the top stories you need to know from the legal world. Join reporters Hillel Aron, Kirk McDaniel, Amanda Pampuro, Kelsey Reichmann and Josh Russell as they take you in and out of courtrooms in the U.S. and beyond and break down developments to help you understand how they affect your day-to-day life.

This episode was produced by Kirk McDaniel. Intro music by The Dead Pens. A transcript is available.

Editorial staff is Ryan Abbott, Sean Duffy and Jamie Ross.

ICE in the courts:

• Judge limits use of tear gas near housing neighboring Portland ICE facility
• ICE blocked for the third time from banning surprise lawmaker oversight visits
• ICE blocked for warrantless arrests in Oregon