Minnesota Latest: Local Police Say ICE Is Profiling & Harassing Off-Duty Cops Of Color
Tensions around the Trump administration’s immigration surge in the Twin Cities remain high three weeks after the shooting of Renee Good — and there is no sign of de-escalation. Federal officials appear determined to continue the operation, while state and local leaders keep pushing back, criticizing the tactics used by ICE agents.
THE FEDS VS. THE LOCALS: Federal prosecutors subpoenaed six offices of state and local Democrats — from Minnesota’s governor to the mayors of Minneapolis and St. Paul — over an investigation into whether state and local leaders impeded the federal immigration operation.
Vice President JD Vance is set to be on the ground in Minneapolis Thursday to meet with ICE officers and defend the operation.
The federal government is set to send even more personnel to the city, with the Pentagon sending military attorneys to assist the DOJ and ordering more active-duty soldiers to ready for possible Minneapolis deployment.
ICE is claiming broad authority to enter homes without a judge’s warrant, according to an internal memo obtained by the Associated Press.
LOCAL REACTION: Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey have accused the federal government of weaponizing the DOJ to intimidate local leaders.
A statewide “ICE Out of Minnesota” protest is planned for Friday. The Wall Street Journal describes the pushback from residents as a “tinderbox” of tensions.
Saint Paul Public Schools is offering temporary online classes for all its 33,000 students starting tomorrow “for safety reasons.”
THE FEDERAL OPERATION
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem says more than 3,000 undocumented migrants have been arrested in the Minneapolis area in the past month and a half.
In the crackdown, federal immigration agents have racially profiled and harassed off-duty local police officers of color, according to Brooklyn Park Police Chief Mark Bruley.
He detailed how ICE agents pulled over one of his officers. He said the officer was boxed in by agents who drew guns and demanded her paperwork— without probable cause. When she tried to record the encounter, Bruley said, an agent knocked away her phone. After she identified herself as law enforcement, the agents abruptly left.
DHS disputed the claim Wednesday, and have repeatedly denied racially profiling residents.
MORE CONTEXT: The Supreme Court ruled in September that DHS agents may stop people based on factors like language or appearance, though the decision formally applies only to parts of Southern California. Critics warn the ruling could open the door to broader racial profiling nationwide.
“If it’s happening to our officers, it pains me to think how many people in our community are experiencing this every day,” Bruley said. “It has to stop.”