U.S. Rep. Bruce Braley is encouraging the Iowa Attorney General to follow the recommendation of Iowa Labor Commissioner Dave Neil when it comes to alleged violations of child labor laws at Agriprocessors.

“I’m appalled by what appears to be blatant and widespread violations of Iowa’s child labor laws at Agriprocessors,” Braley said this evening in a prepared statement. “I commend Labor Commissioner Neil for pursuing this investigation and I trust that Attorney General [Tom] Miller will accept his recommendation to ‘prosecute these violations to the fullest extent of the law.’”

The investigation by the Iowa Division of Labor resulted in 57 cases being passed to the Iowa Attorney General’s Office for possible prosecution. Braley has been a strong and public voice for several months, pushing for the continuation of investigations into safety, child labor, environmental and immigration violations at the Agriprocessors meatpacking plant in Postville. He most recently sent letters to several federal agencies to learn how and if the agencies were cooperating to ensure investigations launched prior to the May 12 immigration raid at the plant would continue.