The Minnesota prosecutor who charged a federal immigration agent with felony assault received more than $286,000 in backing from far-left political groups and dark-money nonprofits, according to campaign finance filings reviewed by the Washington Examiner, raising scrutiny as tensions escalate between federal authorities and local officials.
State campaign finance records show Moriarty’s 2022 campaign was heavily supported by progressive-aligned organizations, despite running as a nonpartisan candidate. The number of donations taken from far-left groups may even exceed $500,000, according to the Law Enforcement Legal Defense Fund, which monitors donations flowing to “Soros prosecutors” across the country. Liberal megadonor George Soros’s philanthropy, Open Society Foundation, gave generous grants to the progressive groups that funded Morarity’s campaign.
While the Washington Examiner was not able to corroborate the full amount cited by LELDF, public records from the activist group TakeAction Minnesota reported spending about $231,000 to support Moriarty’s 2022 campaign through independent expenditures, funded entirely by in-kind contributions from its affiliated 501(c)(4) nonprofit, which is not required to disclose its donors.
Additional backing came from Faith in Minnesota, a nonprofit network tied to the ISAIAH organization. Its political arm reported roughly $26,000 in spending supporting Moriarty, while a separate affiliated fund reported another $29,000 in support, totaling around $286,000 from those three entities alone.
The spending included digital advertising, canvassing operations, and campaign staffing, according to filings submitted to the Minnesota Campaign Finance Board.
The charges against Morgan mark a rare local criminal case against a federal immigration officer and come amid a broader clash between the Trump administration and Minnesota officials over immigration enforcement.
According to local prosecutors, Morgan, 35, was driving an unmarked SUV on Feb. 5 when he pulled alongside another vehicle and pointed his service weapon at the driver and passenger. The individuals who were in Morgan’s line of sight told authorities they feared they were being targeted by “a crazy person” and did not realize he was law enforcement.
Morgan told investigators he feared for his safety after the other vehicle cut him off and said he identified himself as police, though the occupants said they could not hear him.
A nationwide warrant was issued for Morgan’s arrest, and he faces up to seven years in prison on each charge if convicted. The ICE officer had not turned himself in as of Thursday afternoon, ABC News reported.
Moriarty defended the decision, saying federal agents do not have blanket immunity when acting outside their authority. For “a federal agent, our opinion is that illegally driving on a shoulder, pulling up to a car and pointing a gun at the heads of two community members who are not doing anything at the time is well beyond the scope of their authority,” she said.
The case is expected to intensify a standoff with Washington. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has warned that the Justice Department could investigate or prosecute state officials who pursue charges against federal agents tied to their duties. It is not immediately clear whether the Trump administration will take any decisive action over the arrest.
Neither ICE nor the DOJ immediately responded to a request for comment.
Moriarty’s office is no stranger to confrontation with the Trump administration. Last May, the DOJ opened a civil rights investigation into the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office in light of a directive for its prosecutors to consider race when negotiating plea deals with criminal defendants.
And scrutiny of Moriarty’s office extends beyond the charging decision and its race-based policies. Jamael Lundy, an intergovernmental affairs coordinator in the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office, was one of the individuals identified as a participant in a protest that targeted a church service in St. Paul earlier this year.
Lundy, who had been running for state office before suspending his campaign for unclear reasons on April 1, said he attended to support activists and has since been charged with conspiracy against rights related to religious freedom, the Daily Wire first reported on Jan. 19.
Federal prosecutors have charged Lundy alongside nearly 40 people in connection with the January incident at Cities Church, including journalist Don Lemon. Defendants face charges under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act and conspiracy statutes and are accused of intimidating worshippers and disrupting religious services. Multiple defendants have pleaded not guilty as the cases move forward.
MINNESOTA STATE ATTORNEY CHARGES ICE OFFICER WITH TWO COUNTS OF SECOND-DEGREE ASSAULT
According to the federal indictment, prosecutors said Lundy “personally participated in the disruptive takeover operation with other defendants by standing in the main aisle with the others and contributing to the physical obstruction and intimidation of the congregants.” The indictment further alleges he was engaging in various chants like “Hands Up, Don’t Shoot!” and “gesturing in an aggressive and hostile manner,” which congregants and the pastor perceived as threats of violence and a possible prelude to a mass shooting.
The protest targeted a pastor whom activists accused of having ties to ICE operations, drawing a forceful response from the DOJ, which has vowed to see each case to a trial.
