IJ Takes Fight For Accountability After Wrong-House Raid To SCOTUS
In 2017, Trina Martin and her son Gabe were living at the home of her then-boyfriend Toi Cliatt. Early in the morning, an FBI SWAT team battered down their door, detonated a flash-bang grenade, and swept through the home with assault rifles. Toi rushed Trina to a closet while Gabe was alone in his bedroom. When agents discovered Toi and Trina, they handcuffed Toi and started to interrogate him. It was only when Toi stated his address that the agents realized they were in the wrong place.
The SWAT team left the home and went to the address of the house they had a warrant for. The lead agent later returned and left a card for Toi to reach out to about compensation. But the federal government refused to compensate them for anything, even though the raid led to lost wages and therapy bills.
Congress passed that law to make sure people like the Martins can sue for compensation, but courts have created loopholes so big that even the exact lawsuits Congress meant to address get kicked out of court.
On April 29, IJ will argue for accountability before the U.S. Supreme Court.
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