ST. PAUL — State attorneys defending the Minnesota sex offender confinement program are urging a judge to exercise restraint when ordering fixes to a system he ruled is unconstitutional.

In a federal filing Monday, a team led by Deputy Attorney General Nathan Brennaman warns against costly and “unfettered intrusion into state administrative affairs.” The brief was filed ahead of next week’s remedies hearing in a class-action lawsuit overseen by Judge Donovan Frank.

In June, Frank ruled the indefinite treatment center confinement of sex offenders deemed dangerous violated their rights. He sought potential changes to the program from lawyers for the sex offenders and the state. Only the plaintiffs submitted formal recommendations, which the state brief knocks down as too expansive and unrealistic.

The state brief says an appeal in the case is likely.