Minnesota judge bars federal officers from tear gas on peaceful protesters

A Minnesota judge issued a ruling Friday barring federal officers from detaining or deploying tear gas against peaceful protesters who are not obstructing authorities while participating in Operation Metro Surge in Minneapolis.

The order from U.S. District Judge Kate Menendez restricting the actions of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and federal agents comes amid ongoing protests and heightened tension in Minneapolis after an ICE agent fatally shot Minnesota resident Renee Good earlier this month.

The ruling prohibits officers from retaliating against anyone peacefully protesting or observing the actions of immigration officers, adding that federal agents must show probable cause or reasonable suspicion that someone has committed a crime or is interfering with law enforcement operations.

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said following the ruling that the First Amendment does not protect “rioting,” adding that DHS is “taking appropriate and constitutional measures to uphold the rule of law and protect our officers and the public from dangerous rioters.”

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“We remind the public that rioting is dangerous—obstructing law enforcement is a federal crime and assaulting law enforcement is a felony,” McLaughlin said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “Rioters and terrorists have assaulted law enforcement, launched fireworks at them, slashed the tires of their vehicles, and vandalized federal property. Others have chosen to ignore commands and have attempted to impede law enforcement operations and used their vehicles as weapons against our officers.”

McLaughlin added that “assaulting and obstructing law enforcement is a felony.” 

“Despite these grave threats and dangerous situations, our law enforcement has followed their training and used the minimum amount of force necessary to protect themselves, the public, and federal property,” she stated.

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Under the ruling, federal agents cannot use pepper-spray or other non-lethal munitions and crowd dispersal tools against peaceful protesters, the ruling states.

Additionally, Menendez wrote that safely following officers “at an appropriate distance does not, by itself, create reasonable suspicion to justify a vehicle stop.”

The ruling stems from a case filed in December on behalf of six Minnesota activists, represented by the American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota, who argued that government officers were violating the constitutional rights of Twin City residents.

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Government attorneys said officers were acting within their legal authority and appropriately to violence as they’ve enforced immigration laws across the country and in Minnesota.

The ongoing unrest in Minneapolis comes after two recent shootings involving ICE agents in the city.

Good died on Jan. 7 after an ICE agent shot into her vehicle through the driver’s side windshield and open window after she allegedly attempted to run him over. He could be heard on video after the fact saying “f—ing b—h” as her car crashed into a parked car.

While Democrats and local residents have condemned the shooting as a murder and called for the agent’s prosecution, the Trump administration and Republican lawmakers have defended the incident, arguing it was a justified shooting.

Then, in a separate incident Wednesday, an ICE officer was seriously injured after allegedly being ambushed during a traffic stop by three illegal immigrants, according to federal officials. One suspect was shot, and all three were taken into custody, authorities said, after a traffic stop targeting a Venezuelan national escalated into a foot chase and violent struggle.

Menendez is presiding over a separate lawsuit filed Monday by the state of Minnesota and the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul seeking to suspend the enforcement crackdown.

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The American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Fox News Digital’s Sophia Compton and The Associated Press contributed to this report.