The ACLU of Indiana today filed a lawsuit on behalf of Exodus Refugee Immigration, Inc., an agency that for more than four decades has served refugees and other immigrants, arguing that a recent civil investigative demand served upon it by Attorney General Todd Rokita violates Exodus’s First Amendment rights to expression and association. The lawsuit contends that the demand, like those previously sent to other organizations who support refugees and other immigrants, has been issued to retaliate against Exodus for its constitutionally protected activities.
“The civil investigatory demand,” said Ken Falk, legal director of the ACLU of Indiana, “is targeted at Exodus specifically because of the population it serves and is part of a continuing pattern by the Attorney General of sending unreasonable and improper requests to organizations across Indiana. The demand invades the First Amendment rights possessed by Exodus. This sort of retaliatory action by the government is unconstitutional.”
“This is a clear attempt to intimidate Exodus and to prevent us from serving refugees and other humanitarian immigrants here in Central Indiana,” Cole Varga, CEO of Exodus said. “We cannot allow the Attorney General to impede the vital work we do to support the refugees who are our neighbors, colleagues, and friends. That is why we are compelled to seek an injunction that will prevent the Attorney General from wasting valuable time and taxpayer resources on this unfounded demand.”
The complaint can be found here.
