Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis was shot in the leg by ICE agent Christian Castro in Minneapolis on Jan. 14. Federal prosecutors in Minnesota had been preparing a civil-rights case tied directly to that shooting, but Justice Department leaders in Washington overruled that charging path and allowed only false-statement charges to move forward at this stage, according to ProPublica.
The charge prosecutors reportedly wanted was deprivation of rights under color of law, a federal civil-rights offense addressing abuses committed through government authority. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Evans later told lawyers for Sosa-Celis and other victims that the decision was being directed by Main Justice and the U.S. attorney. Evans wrote that he had objected “in the strongest possible terms” but was overruled.
The federal case that moved forward instead focuses on what Castro allegedly told the FBI after the shooting. A grand jury indicted him on six counts of making materially false statements about the Jan. 14 encounter. DOJ says Castro told investigators that he had been attacked with a broom and snow shovel and had fought on the ground for roughly three minutes. One count alleges that the interaction he described lasted about 11 seconds.
Those charges address Castro’s account after Sosa-Celis was shot. The civil-rights prosecution Minnesota prosecutors reportedly prepared would have put Castro’s use of force under direct federal criminal scrutiny. DOJ leadership stopped that route while prosecutors proceeded on the alleged lies instead.
Katie Phang, a former prosecutor and legal journalist, argued that this substantially weakens the federal accountability path. She said prosecutors should be able to pursue the most serious charge supported by the evidence and criticized DOJ leadership for overruling the Minnesota prosecutors. Her point was direct: the government is prosecuting Castro over what he allegedly said after the shooting while the use of force that injured Sosa-Celis is not part of the current federal case.
Sosa-Celis had already suffered consequences from the account that followed the shooting. Minnesota prosecutors say Castro fired through the closed door of a Minneapolis home and struck him in the leg. Castro accused Sosa-Celis and another man of assaulting him with a broom and shovel, but surveillance footage later contradicted key parts of that account, and charges against the men were dropped.
Minnesota prosecutors subsequently charged Castro with four counts of second-degree assault and one count of falsely reporting a crime. Castro was arrested by Texas Rangers in May, but Texas Gov. Greg Abbott did not sign the paperwork needed to return him to Minnesota during the 90-day detention period. Castro was released from the Texas jail while Minnesota’s charges remained pending.
That state case remains open. Castro has since surrendered to federal authorities and now faces six counts tied to statements he allegedly made to investigators. DOJ says each count carries a maximum penalty of five years if he is convicted.
DOJ says it is still evaluating the evidence and has not ruled out additional charges. But the civil-rights prosecution Minnesota prosecutors reportedly sought has not been filed. Evans told lawyers representing Sosa-Celis and other victims that he fought that decision and lost.
For Sosa-Celis, the accountability gap remains plain. He was shot in the leg, the account used to justify what happened to him was later contradicted by evidence, and federal prosecutors reportedly believed Castro’s use of force warranted a civil-rights prosecution. The federal government is now prosecuting Castro for what he allegedly said afterward while the act that put a bullet in Sosa-Celis’s leg remains outside the current federal case.
Americans Against ICE documents cases like Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis’s, tracks accountability failures inside the systems protecting ICE agents, and provides funds and resources to people and families directly impacted by immigration enforcement. Upgrade to a paid subscription to help sustain that work.
Reporting and source material: ProPublica, Katie Phang / MeidasTouch, U.S. Department of Justice, and Minnesota Reformer.
