US judge restricts ICE response to Minneapolis protesters
A US federal judge has issued an order limiting the crowd control tactics that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents (ICE) can use against “peaceful and unobstructed” protesters in Minneapolis.
Judge Katherine Menendez ruled Friday night that federal agents cannot arrest or pepper-spray peaceful demonstrators, including those who follow and observe ICE agents.
The decision comes ahead of planned weekend protests against widespread immigration in the city and follows the fatal shooting of Renee Good by an ICE agent earlier this month.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said it was taking precautions to protect officers from insurgents.
Minnesota officials on Friday appealed to protesters expected to take to the streets this weekend to remain orderly and peaceful.
The state’s National Guard was put on alert and other law enforcement agencies were also deployed ahead of both expected anti-ICE demonstrations and a planned counter march by a conservative influencer.
Judge Menendez’s 83-page order prohibits federal agents from arresting and “using pepper spray or similar nonlethal munitions and crowd dispersal tools against persons participating in peaceful and nonobstructive protest activities.”
The order, which stems from a lawsuit filed by a group of protesters in December, also limits officers’ authority to “stop or detain drivers and passengers in vehicles where there is no reasonable suspicion that they are forcibly obstructing or interfering with their operations.”
“The act of following safely [immigration agents] “The mere fact of being at an appropriate distance does not create reasonable suspicion that would justify stopping the vehicle.”
In a statement to the BBC’s US partner CBS in response to the order, a Department of Homeland Security spokesman said the agency was “taking appropriate and constitutional measures to uphold the rule of law and protect our officers and the public from dangerous insurgents.”
The White House also criticized the decision.
“This ridiculous decision embodies dishonest, left-wing rhetoric,” spokeswoman Abigail Jackson told Politico. “Here is the truth: Federal agents acted lawfully to protect themselves and ensure the integrity of their operations when individuals tried to intervene.”
Minneapolis has been on edge with protests across the city since Good’s shooting on Jan. 7.
Some clashes between protesters and federal authorities were reported last week.
On Saturday, the Minnesota National Guard reported in X that troops were “on standby, ready to assist local law enforcement and public safety agencies.”
National Guard troops will wear high-visibility yellow vests “to help distinguish them from other agencies with similar uniforms,” the post added.
Also on Friday, the justice department announced it was investigating Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, two of the state’s leading Democrats, for allegations they sought to obstruct federal immigration enforcement.
Both condemned ICE operations in the city.
“A reminder to everyone in Minnesota: No one is above the law,” U.S. Attorney Pam Bondi said in an online statement. he said.
The investigation was criticized by Walz and Frey.
“Weaponizing the justice system against your opponents is an authoritarian tactic,” Walz said in a statement.
