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Tag: Minneapolis

  • Border czar says Minnesota ICE surge is ending: “I don’t want to see any more bloodshed”

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    Border czar Tom Homan announced Thursday that Operation Metro Surge in Minnesota is concluding, with a drawdown of federal immigration officers set to occur over the course of next week.

    “I have proposed, and President Trump has concurred, that this surge operation conclude,” Homan said in a news conference held at the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building at Fort Snelling in Minneapolis.

    Homan says the decision was made after looking at two major factors: the multitude of “public safety threat” arrests the operation has yielded, and a steep drop in the need for federal officers to call in quick response force teams due to “agitators.”

    “That is a good thing. That is a win for everybody, not just for the safety of law enforcement officers,” Homan said. “It’s a win for this community.”

    He said a “significant drawdown” is already underway in the state, adding, “I don’t want to see any more bloodshed.”

    White House border czar Tom Homan holds a news conference at the Bishop Whipple Federal building on Feb. 12, 2026 in Minneapolis.

    Scott McFetridge/AP


    “We have a lot of work to do across this country to remove public safety risk, who shouldn’t even be in this country. And to deliver on President Trump’s promise for strong border security and mass deportation, law enforcement officers drawn down from this surge operation will either return to the duty station or be assigned elsewhere to achieve just that.”

    Gov. Tim Walz, who is spoke on budget proposals for businesses impacted by the surge later Thursday morning, said, “The long road to recovery starts now. The impact on our economy, our schools, and people’s lives won’t be reversed overnight. That work starts today.” 

    Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey also issued a statement in the aftermath of Homan’s announcement. 

    “They thought they could break us, but a love for our neighbors and a resolve to endure can outlast an occupation. These patriots of Minneapolis are showing that it’s not just about resistance — standing with our neighbors is deeply American,” he said. “This operation has been catastrophic for our neighbors and businesses, and now it’s time for a great comeback. We will show the same commitment to our immigrant residents and endurance in this reopening, and I’m hopeful the whole country will stand with us as we move forward together.” 

    The announcement comes the same morning as a number of top Minnesota officials are testifying at a U.S. Senate hearing on immigration enforcement, including Attorney General Keith Ellison, Minnesota Department of Corrections Commissioner Paul Schnell and U.S. House Majority Whip Tom Emmer.

    In his opening statement at that hearing, Ellison said Operation Metro Surge has caused “real harm” to Minnesota.

    “This war on Minnesota is retribution to be sure — our policies, our values and how we vote,” Ellison said. “And it comes at a great cost.

    Emmer countered, calling the clashes seen in Minnesota as “a direct result of radical sanctuary state and city policies in Minnesota,” adding that he believes those policies “turned Minnesota into a safe haven for criminal illegal aliens.”

    Homan arrived in Minnesota in late January, less than a week after federal officials announced Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino and some of his agents would be leaving the area.

    On Feb. 4, Homan said federal authorities were going to immediately “draw down” 700 law enforcement personnel in Minnesota and that around 2,000 agents would remain in the state. The number was around 150 before the surge. 

    “My goal, with the support of President Trump, is to achieve a complete drawdown and end this surge as soon as we can, but that is largely contingent upon the end of illegal and threatening activities against ICE and its federal partners that we’re seeing in the community,” Homan said earlier this month.

    Gov. Tim Walz on Tuesday said he expected Operation Metro Surge to last “days, not weeks and months.”

    White House officials said earlier this month that there have been at least 4,000 arrests in Minnesota connected with the federal operation.

    Beret Leone

    contributed to this report.

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  • Cannabis And ICE Agents

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    The hiring process was rushed, but can they be fired if caught while employed – here is the skinny on cannabis and ICE agents.

    The Fresh Toast – The hiring process has been rushed, but can they be fired if caught while employed – here is the skinny on cannabis and ICE agents?

    As debate intensifies over immigration enforcement, scrutiny has also fallen on whether standards have ever been loosened during periods when ICE was directed to rapidly expand its workforce. The concern stems from past political pledges to significantly increase the number of immigration enforcement officers within a short time frame — sometimes by thousands of positions.  So what about cannabis and ICE agents?

    During high-profile expansion efforts, critics have questioned whether certain hiring safeguards were relaxed to meet aggressive staffing targets. It is important to separate perception from documented policy.

    RELATED: Why Anxiety Feels Worse Than Ever

    When Congress allocates funding for additional ICE personnel, the agency can use federal hiring tools such as Direct Hire Authority, expedited onboarding, recruitment bonuses, and streamlined administrative processing. These mechanisms are legal and available to multiple federal agencies facing urgent staffing needs. They allow agencies to move candidates through the pipeline faster — but they do not automatically eliminate core requirements.

    Historically, ICE law enforcement applicants have been required to complete background investigations, medical evaluations, drug testing, physical fitness assessments, and in many cases polygraph examinations. These are baseline standards for most federal criminal investigators and deportation officers. Waiving those entirely would raise significant legal and liability concerns.

    That said, there have been reports during prior hiring surges — particularly during earlier immigration crackdowns — ICE explored modifications to certain screening elements. For example, discussions have surfaced in past years about adjusting polygraph policies, expanding eligibility pools, or reconsidering disqualifiers such as prior cannabis use. In federal hiring, “waivers” can sometimes refer to case-by-case determinations where an applicant with a minor or dated issue is allowed to proceed if it does not pose a security risk.

    This is different from eliminating standards wholesale. A waiver typically means a documented exception approved through supervisory or legal channels, not the removal of the requirement itself.

    Concerns have also been raised about training timelines. In rapid expansion phases, agencies may increase academy class sizes or shorten the time between hiring and field placement. However, federal law enforcement officers must still complete required training programs before exercising full authority.

    RELATED: Is CBD Next On The Fed’s Hit List

    Transparency advocates argue when hiring accelerates quickly, oversight must increase proportionally to ensure standards are not diluted. Supporters of expansion efforts counter workforce shortages can hinder enforcement missions and federal agencies retain professional vetting systems even under pressure.

    Importantly, regardless of hiring tempo, federal drug-free workplace rules remain in force. Because marijuana is still classified as a Schedule I substance under federal law, ICE employees — like all federal officers — are prohibited from using cannabis, even in states where it is legal. Federal law enforcement personnel are subject to random and for-cause drug testing, and a positive marijuana test can lead to disciplinary action, including suspension or termination. In short, while hiring processes may at times be streamlined, federal officers can be fired for using cannabis, and drug policy enforcement remains a firm standard across the agency.

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    Terry Hacienda

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  • Hard hats and dummy plates: Reports of ICE ruses add to fears in Minnesota

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    For days, Luis Ramirez had an uneasy feeling about the men dressed as utility workers he’d seen outside his family’s Mexican restaurant in suburban Minneapolis.

    They wore high-visibility vests and spotless white hard hats, he noticed, even while parked in their vehicle. His search for the Wisconsin-based electrician advertised on the car’s doors returned no results.

    On Tuesday, when their Nissan returned to the lot outside his restaurant, Ramirez, 31, filmed his confrontation with the two men, who hid their faces as he approached and appeared to be wearing heavy tactical gear beneath their yellow vests.

    “This is what our taxpayer money goes to: renting these vehicles with fake tags to come sit here and watch my business,” Ramirez shouts in the video.

    A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not respond to inquiries about whether the men were federal immigration officers. But encounters like Ramirez’s have become increasingly common.

    As the sweeping immigration crackdown in Minnesota continues, legal observers and officials say they have received a growing number of reports of federal agents impersonating construction workers, delivery drivers and in some cases anti-ICE activists.

    Not all of those incidents have been verified, but they have heightened fears in a state already on edge, adding to legal groups’ concerns about the Trump administration’s dramatic reshaping of immigration enforcement tactics nationwide.

    “If you have people afraid that the electrical worker outside their house might be ICE, you’re inviting public distrust and confusion on a much more dangerous level,” said Naureen Shah, the director of immigration advocacy at the American Civil Liberties Union. “This is what you do if you’re trying to control a populace, not trying to do routine, professional law enforcement.”

    In the past, immigration authorities have sometimes used disguises and other deceptions, which they call ruses, to gain entry into homes without a warrant.

    The tactics became more common during President Donald Trump’s first term, attorneys said, prompting an ACLU lawsuit accusing immigration agents of violating the U.S. Constitution by posing as local law enforcement during home raids. A recent settlement restricted the practice in Los Angeles. But ICE deceptions remain legal elsewhere in the country.

    Still, the undercover operations reported in Minnesota would appear to be a “more extreme degree than we’ve seen in the past,” said Shah, in part because they seem to be happening in plain sight.

    Where past ruses were aimed at deceiving immigration targets, the current tactics may also be a response to Minnesota’s sprawling networks of citizen observers that have sought to call attention to federal agents before they make arrests.

    At the Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis, the city’s central hub of ICE activity, activists told the Associated Press they had seen agents leaving in vehicles with stuffed animals on their dashboards or Mexican flag decals on their bumpers. Pickups with lumber or tools in their beds were also frequently spotted.

    In recent weeks, federal agents have repeatedly shown up to construction sites dressed as workers, according to Jose Alvillar, a lead organizer for the local immigrant rights group, Unidos MN.

    “We’ve seen an increase in the cowboy tactics,” he said, though he noted the raids had not resulted in arrests. “Construction workers are good at identifying who is a real construction worker and who is dressing up as one.”

    Since the start of the operation in Minnesota, local officials, including Democratic Gov. Tim Walz, have said ICE agents had been seen swapping license plates or using bogus ones, a violation of state law.

    Candice Metrailer, an antiques dealer in south Minneapolis, believes she witnessed such an attempt firsthand.

    On Jan. 13, she received a call from a man who identified himself as a collector, asking if her store sold license plates. She said it did. A few minutes later, two men in street clothes entered the shop and began looking through her collection of vintage plates.

    “One of them says, ‘Hey, do you have any recent ones?’” Metrailer recalled. “Immediately, an alarm bell went off in my head.”

    Metrailer stepped outside while the men continued browsing. A few doors down from the shop, she saw an idling Ford Explorer with blacked-out windows. She memorized its license plate, then quickly plugged it into a crowdsourced database used by local activists to track vehicles linked to immigration enforcement.

    The database shows an identical Ford with the same plates had been photographed leaving the Whipple building seven times and reported at the scene of an immigration arrest weeks earlier.

    When one of the men approached the register holding a white Minnesota plate, Metrailer said she told him that the store had a new policy against selling the items.

    Metrailer said she had reported the incident to Minnesota’s attorney general. A spokesperson for DHS did not respond to a request for comment.

    Supporters of the immigration crackdown say the volunteer army of ICE-tracking activists in Minneapolis has forced federal agents to adopt new methods of avoiding detection.

    “Of course agents are adapting their tactics so that they’re a step ahead,” said Scott Mechkowski, former deputy director of ICE enforcement and operations in New York City. “We’ve never seen this level of obstruction and interference.”

    In nearly three decades in immigration enforcement, Mechkowski said he also hadn’t seen ICE agents disguising themselves as uniformed workers in the course of making arrests.

    Earlier this summer, a spokesperson for DHS confirmed a man wearing a high-visibility construction vest was an ICE agent conducting surveillance. In Oregon, a natural gas company published guidance last month on how customers could identify their employees after reports of federal impersonators.

    In the days since his encounter, Ramirez, the restaurant worker, said he has been on high alert for undercover agents. He recently stopped a locksmith whom he feared might be a federal agent, before quickly realizing he was a local resident.

    “Everybody is on edge about these guys, man,” Ramirez said. “It feels like they’re everywhere.”

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  • Thousands gather at Powderhorn Park to honor Renee Good a month after her death

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    Saturday marks one month since a federal agent shot and killed Renee Good in Minneapolis. Thousands gathered at Powderhorn Park to celebrate her life and honor her legacy.

    Indigenous leaders led a crowd to honor Good and others killed by ICE by “turning mourning into witness and witness into protection.”

    A rabbi spoke at the event, reading a message from Becca Good, Renee’s wife.

    “I want Renee and our family to be known for how we practiced radical kindness every day. We know what we’ve seen. We know that this is wrong.”

    Good’s sister also spoke to the crowd.

    “We are so proud of how you show up for each other. My family is so grateful for you. Thank you for being my sister’s home,” said Annie Granger.

    The Indigenous community in Minneapolis has been on the forefront of ICE resistance.

    Organizers encouraged people to join to stand together in love, peace and prayer.

    “A lot of times the talk is also angry, and we have a place for anger too,” said Jane Moren of Minneapolis, “but we need all the healing we can get over this thing.”

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    Laurie Perez

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  • Immigrant whose skull was broken in eight places during ICE arrest says beating was unprovoked

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    Alberto Castañeda Mondragón says his memory was so jumbled after a beating by immigration officers that he initially could not remember he had a daughter and still struggles to recall treasured moments like the night he taught her to dance.

    But the violence he endured last month in Minnesota while being detained is seared into his battered brain.

    He remembers Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents pulling him from a friend’s car on Jan. 8 outside a St. Paul shopping center and throwing him to the ground, handcuffing him, then punching him and striking his head with a steel baton. He remembers being dragged into an SUV and taken to a detention facility, where he said he was beaten again.

    He also remembers the emergency room and the intense pain from eight skull fractures and five life-threatening brain hemorrhages.

    “They started beating me right away when they arrested me,” the Mexican immigrant recounted this week to The Associated Press, which recently reported on how his case contributed to mounting friction between federal immigration agents and a Minneapolis hospital.

    Castañeda Mondragón, 31, is one of an unknown number of immigration detainees who, despite avoiding deportation during the Trump administration’s enforcement crackdown, have been left with lasting injuries following violent encounters with ICE officers. His case is one of the excessive-force claims the federal government has thus far declined to investigate.

    He was hurt so badly he was disoriented for days at Hennepin County Medical Center, where ICE officers constantly watched over him.

    The officers told nurses Castañeda Mondragón “purposefully ran headfirst into a brick wall,” an account his caregivers immediately doubted. A CT scan showed fractures to the front, back and both sides of his skull — injuries a doctor told AP were inconsistent with a fall.

    “There was never a wall,” Castañeda Mondragón said in Spanish, recalling ICE officers striking him with the same metal rod used to break the windows of the vehicle he was in. He later identified it as an ASP, a telescoping baton routinely carried by law enforcement.

    Training materials and police use-of-force policies across the U.S. say such a baton can be used to hit the arms, legs and body. But striking the head, neck or spine is considered potentially deadly force.

    “The only time a person can be struck in the head with any baton is when the person presents the same threat that would permit the use of a firearm — a lethal threat to the officer or others,” said Joe Key, a former Baltimore police lieutenant and use-of-force expert who testifies in defense of police.

    Once he was taken to an ICE holding facility at Ft. Snelling in suburban Minneapolis, Castañeda Mondragón said officers resumed beating him. Recognizing that he was seriously hurt, he said, he pleaded with them to stop but they just “laughed at me and hit me again.”

    “They were very racist people,” he said. “No one insulted them, neither me nor the other person they detained me with. It was their character, their racism toward us, for being immigrants.”

    The Department of Homeland Security, which includes ICE, did not respond to repeated requests for comment over the last two weeks on Castañeda Mondragón’s injuries.

    It is unclear whether his arrest was captured on body-camera footage or if there might be additional recordings from security cameras at the detention center.

    In a recent bid to boost transparency, DHS announced a broad rollout of body cameras for immigration officers in Minneapolis as the government also draws down ICE’s presence there.

    ICE deportation officer William J. Robinson did not say how Castañeda Mondragón’s skull was smashed in a Jan. 20 declaration filed in federal court. During the intake process, it was determined he “had a head injury that required emergency medical treatment,” he wrote in the filing.

    The declaration also stated that Castañeda Mondragón entered the U.S. legally in March 2022, and that the agency determined only after his arrest that he had overstayed his visa. A federal judge later ruled his arrest had been unlawful and ordered him released from ICE custody.

    A video posted to social media captured the moments immediately after Castañeda Mondragón’s arrest as four masked men walk him handcuffed through a parking lot. The video shows him unsteady and stumbling, held up by ICE officers.

    “Don’t resist,” shouts the woman who is recording. “Cause they ain’t gonna do nothing but bang you up some more.”

    “Hope they don’t kill you,” she adds.

    “And y’all gave the man a concussion,” a male bystander shouts.

    The witness who posted the video declined to speak with AP or provide consent for the video’s publication, but Castañeda Mondragón confirmed he is the handcuffed man seen in the recording.

    At least one ICE officer later told staff at the medical center that Castañeda Mondragón “got his (expletive) rocked,” according to court documents filed by a lawyer seeking his release and nurses who spoke with AP.

    AP interviewed a doctor and five nurses about Castañeda Mondragón’s treatment at HCMC and the presence of ICE officers inside the hospital. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss patient care and feared retaliation. AP also consulted an outside physician, who affirmed the injuries were inconsistent with an accidental fall or running into a wall.

    Minnesota state law requires health professionals to report to law enforcement any wounds that could have been perpetrated as part of a crime.

    An HCMC spokeswoman declined to say this week whether anyone at the facility had done so. However, following the Jan. 31 publication of AP’s initial story about Castañeda Mondragón’s arrest, hospital administrators opened an internal inquiry seeking to determine which staff members have spoken to the media, according to internal communications viewed by AP.

    Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz posted a link to AP’s prior story about Castañeda Mondragón, but his office has not said whether state authorities would pursue answers.

    “Law enforcement cannot be lawless,” Walz wrote in the post on X. “Thousands of aggressive, untrained agents of the federal government continue to injure and terrorize Minnesotans. This must end.”

    Castañeda Mondragón’s arrest came a day after  the first  of  two fatal shootings of U.S. citizens in Minneapolis by immigration officers, triggering widespread public protests.

    Minnesota congressional leaders and other elected officials, including St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her, called this week for an investigation of Castañeda Mondragón’s injuries.

    The Ramsey County Attorney’s Office, which oversees St. Paul, urged Castañeda Mondragón to file a police report to prompt an investigation. He said he plans to file a complaint. A St. Paul police spokesperson said the department would investigate “all alleged crimes that are reported to us.”

    While the Trump administration insists ICE limits its operations to immigrants with violent rap sheets, Castañeda Mondragón has no criminal record.

    “We are seeing a repeated pattern of Trump Administration officials attempting to lie and gaslight the American people when it comes to the cruelty of this ICE operation in Minnesota,” Sen. Tina Smith, a Minnesota Democrat, said in a statement.

    Rep. Kelly Morrison, another Democrat and a doctor, recently toured the Whipple Building, the ICE facility at Ft. Snelling. She said she saw severe overcrowding, unsanitary conditions and an almost complete lack of medical care.

    “If any one of our police officers did this, you know what just happened in Minnesota with George Floyd, we hold them accountable,” said Democratic Rep. Betty McCollum, whose district includes St. Paul.

    A native of Veracruz, Mexico, Castañeda Mondragón came to Minnesota nearly four years ago on a temporary work visa and found jobs as a driver and roofer. He uses his earnings to support his elderly father, who is disabled and diabetic, and his 10-year-old daughter.

    On the day of his arrest, he was running errands with a friend when they suddenly found themselves surrounded by ICE agents. They began breaking the windows and opening the doors of the vehicle. He said the first person who hit him “got ugly with me for being Mexican” and not having documents showing his immigration status.

    About four hours after his arrest, court records show, Castañeda Mondragón was taken to an emergency room in the suburb of Edina with swelling and bruising around his right eye and bleeding. He was then transferred to the Minneapolis medical center, where he told staff he had been “dragged and mistreated by federal agents,” before his condition deteriorated, court records show.

    A week into his hospitalization, caregivers described him as minimally responsive. As his condition slowly improved, hospital staff handed him his cellphone, and he spoke with his child in Mexico, whom he could not remember.

    “I am your daughter,” she told him. “You left when I was 6 years old.”

    His head injuries erased past experiences that for his daughter are unforgettable, including birthday parties and the day he left for the U.S. She’s been trying to revive his memory in daily calls.

    “When I turned 5, you taught me how to dance for the first time,” she reminded him recently.

    “All these moments, really, for me, have been forgotten,” he said.

    He showed gradual improvement and, to the surprise of some who treated him, was released from the hospital on Jan. 27.

    He faces a long recovery and an uncertain future. Questions loom about whether he will be able to continue to support his family back in Mexico. “My family depends on me,” he said.

    Though his bruises have faded, the effects of his traumatic brain injuries linger. In addition to the problems with his memory, he also has issues with balance and coordination that could prove debilitating for a man whose work requires going up and down ladders. He said he is unable to bathe himself without help.

    “I can’t get on a roof now,” he said.

    Castañeda Mondragón, who does not have health insurance, said doctors have told him he needs ongoing care. Unable to earn a living, he is relying on support from co-workers and members of the Minneapolis-St. Paul community who are raising money to help provide food, housing and medical care. He has launched a GoFundMe.

    Still, he hopes to stay in the U.S. and to provide again someday for his loved ones. He differentiates between people in Minnesota, where he said he has felt welcome, and the federal officers who beat him.

    “It’s immense luck to have survived, to be able to be in this country again, to be able to heal, and to try to move forward,” he said. “For me, it’s the best luck in the world.”

    But when he closes his eyes at night, the fear that ICE officers will come for him dominates his dreams. He is now terrified to leave his apartment, he said.

    “You’re left with the nightmare of going to work and being stopped,” Castañeda Mondragón said, “or that you’re buying your food somewhere, your lunch, and they show up and stop you again. They hit you.”

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  • Fire at utility generation plant, no injuries reported

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    The Minneapolis Fire Department was called to a utility generation plant on the 600 block of Main Street Southeast on reports of smoke and flames around 10:30 p.m. Friday. 

    When the fire department arrived, firefighters found flames coming through the roof. Firefighters were able to lay lines, but needed extra equipment for a remote area of the building. 

    Extra crews and equipment were called for and arrived on scene. 

    Crews removed parts of the roof in order to put out the fire. 

    The fire department said that there were no injuries and no interruptions to plant operations. 

    The cause of the fire is under investigation. 

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    WCCO Staff

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  • Minnesota BCA

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    Democratic U.S. Reps. Angie Craig and Betty McCollum of Minnesota said Friday that they were denied entry to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement holding facility at the Whipple federal building in Minneapolis.

    McCollum, of Minnesota’s 4th Congressional District, said she was told by federal officials that, because of a lawsuit, only 13 people are allowed in the facility, though she did not expand on the lawsuit she was referring to. 

    McCollum added that there’s language in the last appropriations bill that was passed that allows members of Congress to “fulfill their Congressional obligation for life, health and safety, and to make sure that people are treated in humane conditions.”

    CBS News has reached out to federal agencies for clarity about why members of Congress were not allowed in, but has not yet heard back.

    “I’ve never seen anything like this,” McCollum said. “No president has ever behaved this way, breaking the law, breaking the constitution, and having his administration just decide what they wanna do and what they don’t wanna do. Whether it’s the Defense Department or the Department of Homeland Security, it’s out of control.” 

    Friday marked the second time Craig, who represents Minnesota’s 2nd Congressional District, was denied access to the facility. She, Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District, and Rep. Kelly Morrison, D-Minnesota’s 3rd Congressional District, were denied entry last month.

    “We are bound by our duties as members of Congress to be able to check on their health, on their safety,” Craig said.

    She added that she’s received reports from her constituents that some of the people detained have “serious medical issues” and that family members aren’t able to give prescription drugs to them. 

    Craig and McCollum in a joint written statement, said, “This will not be the last time we show up to conduct our oversight duties.”

    Morrison calls for facility’s closure

    Morrison, who was granted access to the Whipple building facility on Friday afternoon, says she saw about 40 people inside.

    She says she’s worried about the spread of measles at the building and couldn’t get any information on plans to limit exposure. 

    Morrison was told two people at the facility on Friday were brought from Texas, where there are reports of measles at a detention center.

    “People are sleeping on concrete floors. They don’t have real blankets. They have those kind of tinfoil, temporary blankets. It’s a very, it’s a very disheartening scene and I think it’s beneath what we should expect in the United States of America,” Morrison said on Friday afternoon.

    She said the facility should be shut down.

    “People are very dejected. It’s horrifying to be present in that place,” Morrison said.

    She added she was let in because she’s one of 13 members of Congress suing the Trump administration over policies restricting unannounced visits to ICE facilities.

    Morrison made two visits to the facility before Friday.

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    WCCO Staff

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  • Photos You Should See – February 2026

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    Is the U.S. Losing Ground in Science?

    More Americans think the U.S. is losing ground in scientific achievements compared to other countries, and a clear split emerges when the numbers are analyzed by political parties, according to a new poll.

    Cecelia Smith-SchoenwalderJan. 15, 2026

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    Michael A. Brooks

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  • SOS put out for Twin Cities small businesses amid ICE surge

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    Several Twin Cities small businesses say Operation Metro Surge has cost them millions of dollars in revenue. Now, they’re asking for the community’s help. 

    A group of business leaders gathered Friday at Urban Growler in St. Paul, Minnesota, to highlight the dire situation, and make it clear that the time to act is now. 

    We’re finally getting a look at some of the numbers when it comes to the financial impact of the federal immigration officer influx, with individual businesses losing thousands of dollars a day — while the city of Minneapolis estimates it’s losing $10 million to $20 million in revenue each week.

    The city’s Lake Street corridor in particular is down $46 million in revenue between December 2025 and last month, according to city officials.

    Community leaders are urging people to use next week as a time to support small businesses, especially shops and restaurants, each day of the week.

    They say while this situation is far different from the COVID pandemic, the financial impact is comparable in some ways. But this time, there’s no federal relief money on the way.

    “Many of these businesses don’t have months, they have weeks,” said Alex West Steinman, co-founder of The Coven. “If they close, it’s not just bad for business. It’s a devastating blow to Minnesota. It means more people without work, food or community.”

    Business leaders Friday say even if federal immigration officers were to leave Minnesota tomorrow, the recovery would take months.

    This story will be updated.

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    Adam Duxter

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  • Nearly 160 people arrested for impeding, assaulting federal officers in Minnesota last month

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    Border czar Tom Homan said a drawdown in federal agents will happen when more Minnesota counties cooperate and if people stop interfering with federal agents.

    “If you violate the law, you will be federally prosecuted,” Homan said during a press conference on Wednesday.

    Homan says in the past month, 158 people have been arrested for impeding or assaulting federal officers, with 85 cases already accepted for prosecution.

    The Department of Homeland Security posted photos of nine people on X, saying, “more agitators arrested in Minneapolis.”

    One pictured in the post is Davis Redmond. Court documents say he was “driving aggressively” while following border patrol agents through Minneapolis before he “suddenly (accelerated) his car, colliding with the black GMC” driven by border patrol.  

    Redmond’s attorney said on Thursday the charges he faces were downgraded from a felony to a misdemeanor.

    “The charges are bogus, and the decision to bring this case is outrageous,” the attorney said in an email to WCCO.

    In a separate case, prosecutors claim Brittany Stallings assaulted a federal agent on Jan. 24, the day Alex Pretti was shot and killed. Court documents say Stallings shoved the agent and punched him in the face.   

    Timothy Catlett was also featured in the DHS post online. Prosecutors accused Catlett of “giving an officer the middle finger” during an operation in St. Cloud on Jan. 12. Court documents say when the officers tried to leave, Catlett pounded on the hood and kicked the side door of their car. On Thursday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office filed to dismiss the case.

    It’s unclear if the number cited by Homan includes cases like Matt Allen, better known as Twin Cities rapper Nur-D. WCCO cameras captured his arrest on Jan. 24.

    “So, I walk calmly, I walk slowly with my hands up,” Nur-D said. “I was just being grabbed by somebody and so I began to run, and as I was thrown to the ground, I was told I was under arrest for assaulting a federal officer.”

    Nur-D claims he did nothing wrong and said his attorneys plan to pursue legal action against DHS.

    WCCO reached out to attorneys for Catlett and Stallings for comment.

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    Ashley Grams

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  • Twin Cities tow truck driver returns abandoned vehicles to families after ICE arrests

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    Juan Leon had only been running his tow truck business, Leo’s Towing, for a few months when he noticed a pattern that kept repeating itself.

    Cars were being left behind across the Twin Cities metro area – parked on streets, in parking lots, sometimes for days at a time. The owners were gone, and in many cases, they had been arrested by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

    “Seeing there was a need for someone to help out, help clear the streets and get the people back their vehicles. So we stepped up and started doing it,” Leon said.

    By late December, Leon and his small towing crew decided to do something about it – all thanks to observers calling in and reporting these vehicles.

    “Families reach out to us. If the family isn’t reaching out, we’ll find a way to get inside the vehicle and we’ll bring it back to their house and put it in a safe spot,” Leon said.

    They began picking up vehicles and returning them to the families of those arrested – free of charge. 

    “We’re able to do this 24/7, so we don’t have to go back to our other jobs,” Leon said.

    Donations began pouring in all across the country, supporting Leon’s cause, but not without a cost to their personal safety.

    “When they doxxed me, they put all my information out there,” Leon said. “For the last three weeks, we have been getting nothing but death threats.”

    Leon sends a “chase” car to check out where these abandoned vehicles are located and arranges discreet drop-offs. Since late December, they have estimated they have dropped off 250 cars.

    The drop-offs are often emotional for the families and Leon’s crew.

    “All I can do is give them a hug and tell them hopefully things will get better,” said Gonzalo Villegas. “Sad isn’t even the word to use; it’s so much stronger than that.”

    Despite the emotional strain, the team continues.

    “We are going to figure it out day by day if we have to,” Leon said.

    Leo’s Tow actively tries to locate family members on their Facebook page and hosts podcasts recapping their weeks returning vehicles.

    Leo’s Tow will be hosting a charity event on Sunday at Lito’s Burritos.

    In:

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  • Senate is not ‘anywhere close’ to a funding deal as ICE fight intensifies

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    WASHINGTON — Senate Republican Leader John Thune warned Thursday that Congress is not close to an agreement to fund the Department of Homeland Security, signaling that another short-term extension may be the only way to avoid a shutdown as Democrats demand “nonnegotiable” ICE reforms ahead of the Feb. 13 deadline.

    The Republicans are increasingly looking to punt the full funding package a second time if negotiations collapse. Speaking on the Senate floor Thursday, Thune said that such a move would not include any reforms lawmakers had previously negotiated, including body cameras for immigration agents.

    “As of right now, we aren’t anywhere close to having any sort of an agreement that would enable us to fund the Department of Homeland Security,” he said. “If [Democrats] are coming to the table demanding a blank check or refusing to consider any measures but their own, they’re likely to end up with nothing.”

    He spoke hours after House and Senate Democrats announced they were aligned behind a list of 10 demands they say must be passed before approving the Homeland Security funding package through September.

    Democrats are pressing for statutory limits on immigration raids, new judicial warrant requirements, body-worn cameras, identification rules for agents and enhanced oversight of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection — reforms they say are necessary to rein in what House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) called an agency “out of control.”

    Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Democrats are planning to propose the legislation as soon as possible.

    “We want our Republican colleagues to finally get serious about this, because this is turning America inside out in a way we haven’t seen in a very long time,” Schumer said.

    The coordinated demands signal unity among House and Senate Democrats after a rocky week on Capitol Hill. In a slim vote, 21 House Democrats joined Republicans on Tuesday to end a partial government shutdown by temporarily extending Homeland Security funding through Feb. 13.

    The two-week stopgap, called a “continuing resolution,” was meant to leave time for the two parties to debate how to rein in ICE after the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis.

    But that truce has quickly unraveled. Republican leaders have little appetite for the full slate of reforms. Some have indicated openness to narrower changes, such as expanding body camera programs and training, but reject mask bans and the removal of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

    House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has already ruled out warrant requirements, which would limit immigration agents from entering private property without a court order. In remarks to reporters Wednesday, he also hinted at some interest in attaching voter ID and anti-sanctuary city policies to negotiations.

    “It will be part of the discussion over the next couple of weeks, and we’ll see how that shakes out. But I suspect that some of the changes — the procedural modifications with ICE, Immigration and Customs Enforcement — will be codified,” he said.

    Johnson was confident the two sides could make a deal without further delays, adding that negotiations are largely between “the White House, Schumer and Senate Democrats.”

    President Trump has privately supported the short-term extension to cool tensions while publicly defending immigration agents and expressing skepticism toward Democrats’ reform push, according to House leadership.

    White House border policy advisor Tom Homan also announced a drawdown of 700 federal agents from Minneapolis this week as what officials framed as a goodwill gesture amid negotiations.

    Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said Thursday that the administration is willing to consider some of the demands Democrats have made, but said some of their requests are not “grounded in any common sense and they are nonstarters for this administration.”

    Leavitt did not specify which reforms the administration was willing to consider. She did, however, say the president is committed to keeping the government open and supporting “immigration enforcement efforts in this country.”

    The White House did not respond when asked if the president would support a short-term spending measure should negotiations stall.

    Republicans continue to warn that a failure to reach a deal would jeopardize disaster response funding, airport security operations, maritime patrols, and increased security assistance for major national events, including the upcoming World Cup in Los Angeles.

    “If we don’t do it by the middle of next week, we should consider a continuing resolution for the rest of the year and just put this all behind us,” said Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.), chair of the House Freedom Caucus.

    Democrats, however, remain adamant that verbal assurances are no longer enough.

    “These are just some of the commonsense proposals that the American people clearly would like to see in terms of the dramatic changes that are needed at the Department of Homeland Security before there is a full-year appropriations bill,” Jeffries said.

    Times staff writer Ana Ceballos in Washington contributed to this report.

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  • Border czar says feds will withdraw 700 law enforcement personnel from Minnesota immediately

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    Brent and Luke Ganger, the brothers of Renee Good, are testifying Tuesday afternoon at a public Congressional forum concerning “the violent tactics and disproportionate use of force by agents of the Department of Homeland Security.”  

    Below is a transcript of the opening statements made by the Ganger brothers.


    Luke Ganger

    I was talking to my 4-year-old last week, when she noticed I was not doing well. I had to come here today and talk to some important people. She knows that her aunt died and that somebody caused it to happen.

    She told me that there are no bad people, and that everyone makes mistakes. She has Nay’s spirit.

    The deep distress our family feels because of Nay’s loss is in such a violent and unnecessary way is complicated by feelings of disbelief, distress and desperation for change.

    In the last few weeks, our family took some consolation thinking that perhaps Nay’s death would bring about change in our country. And it has not.

    The completely surreal scenes taking place on the streets of Minneapolis are beyond explanation. This is not just a bad day or a rough week or isolated incidents. These encounters with federal agents are changing the community and changing many lives — including ours — forever. And I still don’t know how to explain to my 4-year-old what these agents are doing when we pass by.

    Our family is deeply grateful for the outpouring of love and support from the community in Minneapolis and from people across the country and around the world. 

    The prayers and words of support have truly brought us comfort and it is meaningful that these sentiments have come from people of all colors, faiths and ideals. That is a perfect reflection of Renee, who carried peace, patience and love for others wherever she went.

    Our family is a very American blend. We vote differently, and we rarely completely agree on the finer details of what it means to be a citizen of this country. We attend various churches and some not at all. And despite those differences, we have always treated each other with love and respect, and we’ve gotten even closer during this very divided time in our country.

    And we hope that our family can be even a small example to others, not to let political ideals divide us, to be good like Renee. 

    But the most important thing we can do today is to help this panel and our country understand who Nay is, and what a beautiful American we have lost: the sister, a daughter, mother, a partner and a friend.



    Raw video: Renee Good’s brothers testify at Capitol Hill hearing

    09:09

    Brent Ganger

    I’d like to share some thoughts from the eulogy that I gave on my sister’s behalf this past Saturday.

    When I think of Renee, I think of dandelions and sunlight. Dandelions don’t ask permission to grow. They push through cracks in the sidewalk, through hard soil, to places where you don’t expect beauty, and suddenly there they are — bright, alive, unapologetically hopeful. 

    That was Renee, and sunlight, warm, steady, lifegiving. Because when she walked in a room, things felt lighter, even on cloudy days.

    Renee had a way of showing up in the world that made you believe things were going to be OK. Not because she ignored the hardship, but because she chose optimism anyway. She chose to look for what was good, what was possible and what was worth loving.

    Nay loved fiercely, openly and without hesitation. As a mother, Renee poured herself into love, the kind of love that shows up every day, that sacrifices quietly, that cheers loudly, that believes deeply.

    Her children were and are her heart, walking around outside her body, and she made sure they felt safe, valued and endlessly loved.

    As a sister, she was constant. Someone you could lean on, laugh with or just sitting in silence beside. She had a way of making you feel understood even when you didn’t have the words yet. She didn’t just listen, she saw you. She believed in second chances. She believed tomorrow could be better than today. She believed that kindness mattered, and she lived that belief.

    Even when things were hard, Nay looked for the light, and if she couldn’t find it, she became the light for somebody else. It was the excessively ordinary things that made Nay so beautiful.

    There are billions of people who now know her name, and it would be so easy to fall into the false belief that great heroic things are required to overcome difficult things in the world.

    But as Tolkien wrote, “it is the small everyday deeds of ordinary folk that keep the darkness at bay, small acts of kindness and love.” That’s why the image of dandelions feels so right. People try to pull them up, overlook them, dismiss them — but they keep coming back stronger, brighter, spreading seeds of hope everywhere they land.

    Renee planted those seeds in all of us, in her children, in her family, in friends, co-workers and people who maybe didn’t even realize they needed her light at the time.

    And sunlight, sunlight doesn’t ask for recognition, it just gives, it warms, it nurtures, it helps things grow. Renee did that for us. She helped us grow. She helped us believe in ourselves. She helped us see the good even when life felt heavy.

    Renee is not gone from us. She’s in the light that finds us on hard days. She’s in the resilience we didn’t know we had until we needed it. She’s in the laughter, the memories, the love that continues to grow. 

    Like dandelions, like sunlight, and like Renee.

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    WCCO Staff

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  • Border czar says feds will withdraw 700 law enforcement personnel from Minnesota immediately

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    Brent and Luke Ganger, the brothers of Renee Good, are testifying Tuesday afternoon at a public Congressional forum concerning “the violent tactics and disproportionate use of force by agents of the Department of Homeland Security.”  

    Below is a transcript of the opening statements made by the Ganger brothers.


    Luke Ganger

    I was talking to my 4-year-old last week, when she noticed I was not doing well. I had to come here today and talk to some important people. She knows that her aunt died and that somebody caused it to happen.

    She told me that there are no bad people, and that everyone makes mistakes. She has Nay’s spirit.

    The deep distress our family feels because of Nay’s loss is in such a violent and unnecessary way is complicated by feelings of disbelief, distress and desperation for change.

    In the last few weeks, our family took some consolation thinking that perhaps Nay’s death would bring about change in our country. And it has not.

    The completely surreal scenes taking place on the streets of Minneapolis are beyond explanation. This is not just a bad day or a rough week or isolated incidents. These encounters with federal agents are changing the community and changing many lives — including ours — forever. And I still don’t know how to explain to my 4-year-old what these agents are doing when we pass by.

    Our family is deeply grateful for the outpouring of love and support from the community in Minneapolis and from people across the country and around the world. 

    The prayers and words of support have truly brought us comfort and it is meaningful that these sentiments have come from people of all colors, faiths and ideals. That is a perfect reflection of Renee, who carried peace, patience and love for others wherever she went.

    Our family is a very American blend. We vote differently, and we rarely completely agree on the finer details of what it means to be a citizen of this country. We attend various churches and some not at all. And despite those differences, we have always treated each other with love and respect, and we’ve gotten even closer during this very divided time in our country.

    And we hope that our family can be even a small example to others, not to let political ideals divide us, to be good like Renee. 

    But the most important thing we can do today is to help this panel and our country understand who Nay is, and what a beautiful American we have lost: the sister, a daughter, mother, a partner and a friend.



    Raw video: Renee Good’s brothers testify at Capitol Hill hearing

    09:09

    Brent Ganger

    I’d like to share some thoughts from the eulogy that I gave on my sister’s behalf this past Saturday.

    When I think of Renee, I think of dandelions and sunlight. Dandelions don’t ask permission to grow. They push through cracks in the sidewalk, through hard soil, to places where you don’t expect beauty, and suddenly there they are — bright, alive, unapologetically hopeful. 

    That was Renee, and sunlight, warm, steady, lifegiving. Because when she walked in a room, things felt lighter, even on cloudy days.

    Renee had a way of showing up in the world that made you believe things were going to be OK. Not because she ignored the hardship, but because she chose optimism anyway. She chose to look for what was good, what was possible and what was worth loving.

    Nay loved fiercely, openly and without hesitation. As a mother, Renee poured herself into love, the kind of love that shows up every day, that sacrifices quietly, that cheers loudly, that believes deeply.

    Her children were and are her heart, walking around outside her body, and she made sure they felt safe, valued and endlessly loved.

    As a sister, she was constant. Someone you could lean on, laugh with or just sitting in silence beside. She had a way of making you feel understood even when you didn’t have the words yet. She didn’t just listen, she saw you. She believed in second chances. She believed tomorrow could be better than today. She believed that kindness mattered, and she lived that belief.

    Even when things were hard, Nay looked for the light, and if she couldn’t find it, she became the light for somebody else. It was the excessively ordinary things that made Nay so beautiful.

    There are billions of people who now know her name, and it would be so easy to fall into the false belief that great heroic things are required to overcome difficult things in the world.

    But as Tolkien wrote, “it is the small everyday deeds of ordinary folk that keep the darkness at bay, small acts of kindness and love.” That’s why the image of dandelions feels so right. People try to pull them up, overlook them, dismiss them — but they keep coming back stronger, brighter, spreading seeds of hope everywhere they land.

    Renee planted those seeds in all of us, in her children, in her family, in friends, co-workers and people who maybe didn’t even realize they needed her light at the time.

    And sunlight, sunlight doesn’t ask for recognition, it just gives, it warms, it nurtures, it helps things grow. Renee did that for us. She helped us grow. She helped us believe in ourselves. She helped us see the good even when life felt heavy.

    Renee is not gone from us. She’s in the light that finds us on hard days. She’s in the resilience we didn’t know we had until we needed it. She’s in the laughter, the memories, the love that continues to grow. 

    Like dandelions, like sunlight, and like Renee.

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  • House committee report accuses White House, DHS of Good, Pretti killings cover-up

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    The Democratic members of a U.S. House committee have released the findings of a report examining last month’s fatal shootings in Minneapolis by federal immigration officers.

    Renee Good was shot dead by ICE officer Jonathan Ross on Jan. 7, 2025, and Alex Pretti was killed by two Border Patrol officers on Jan. 24.

    Democratic California Rep. Robert Garcia, the ranking member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, laid out four of the report’s key findings:

    • “The Trump Administration’s extreme policies, violent tactics, and culture of impunity led to the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.”
    • “The Trump Administration’s lies about the killings cannot cover up what the American people saw with their own eyes.”
    • “The available evidence suggests that the Trump Administration is attempting to cover up misconduct.”
    • “The Trump Administration is continuing its cover-up by impeding thorough and impartial investigations into the shootings.”

    The report also highlights how evidence counters the administration’s initial claims that both victims were domestic terrorists aiming to harm federal law enforcement.

    “Let’s be clear: the killings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti could have been prevented, and they should both still be alive,” Garcia wrote. “President Trump, [Homeland Security Secretary] Kristi Noem, and [the U.S. Department of Homeland Security] have lied over and over again and are now trying to cover up the truth. The Trump Administration needs to be held accountable.”

    In a statement to WCCO, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson defended the work of federal officers.

    “Federal law enforcement officers are heroically removing dangerous criminal illegal aliens from American communities – including murderers, rapists, and pedophiles. The Trump Administration is grateful for their important work,” Jackson said.

    WCCO has also reached out to Homeland Security for comment.

    The committee, chaired by Kentucky Republican Rep. James Comer, is currently comprised of 44 representatives: 24 Republicans and 20 Democrats.

    Republican members include Reps. Jim Jordan, Paul Gosar, Virginia Foxx, Pete Sessions, Nancy Mace and Lauren Boebert. Its Democratic members include Reps. Eleanor Holmes Norton, Kwesisi Mfume, Shontel Brown, Jasmine Crockett, Ayanna Pressley and Rashida Tlaib.

    Good’s brothers, Brent and Luke Ganger, testified Tuesday at a public Congressional forum co-led by Garcia on “the violent tactics and disproportionate use of force by agents of the Department of Homeland Security.”

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  • Renee Good’s brothers to testify on Capitol Hill on federal agents’ use of force

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    Grants open for small businesses affect by ICE surge

    The Latino Economic Development Center says it is launching a grant for Latino-owned small businesses that are struggling amid Operation Metro Surge.

    Small businesses on St. Paul’s east side have faced reduced foot traffic and revenue loss because workers and community members are afraid to leave their homes, the development center says.

    Grant funds can be used to help with payroll, rent, loans and other operating expenses. Though it’s intended for businesses on St. Paul’s east side, the development center says it’s encouraging others to apply as well, as they’re looking for other opportunities to support businesses across the state.

     

    As Columbia Heights students return to class, superintendent calls for ICE de-escalation

    Class is back in session Tuesday for students at Columbia Heights Public Schools, one day after a racially and politically motivated bomb threat forced them to close for the day. 

    Their superintendent said their focus is squarely on returning home four other students in federal custody. 

    [Read more]

     

    Gov. Tim Walz, Attorney General Keith Ellison to address impact of federal detention on children

    Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison will join school leaders to discuss the impact of federal detention on children and families in Minnesota.

    How to watch

    • What: Walz, Ellison address impact of federal detention of children
    • Who: Walz, Ellison, Department of Education Commissioner Willie Jett, education and health leaders
    • When: 12:45 p.m. Tuesday
    • How to watch: You can watch live in the player above or on YouTube.

     

    Brothers of Renee Good to testify about federal agents’ use of force at Capitol Hill hearing

    Renee Good’s brothers will be among those who testify at a hearing in Washington, D.C., Tuesday afternoon as part of an inquiry into federal agents and their use of force.

    The hearing, which starts at 2 p.m., is organized by two Democrats: Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Rep. Robert Garcia of California. 

    [Read more]

     

    Richfield observer’s encounter with Border Patrol leads to court filing alleging “retaliation”

    As the immigration crackdown continues in Minnesota, Nicole Cleland, a resident of Richfield, Minnesota, believes federal agents identified her through facial recognition software. 

    Cleland has actively protested against the deployment of federal agents in the Twin Cities. She says she’s a trained observer, following officers of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, as well as Customs and Border Protection. Her account is detailed in a lawsuit filed alongside other observers against the Department of Homeland Security 

    [Read more]

     

    ICE claims that a man shattered his skull running into wall; Hennepin Healthcare doctors express skepticism

    Intensive care nurses immediately doubted the word of federal immigration officers when they arrived at a Minneapolis hospital with a Mexican immigrant who had broken bones in his face and skull.

    Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents initially claimed Alberto Castañeda Mondragón had tried to flee while handcuffed and “purposefully ran headfirst into a brick wall,” according to court documents filed by a lawyer seeking his release.

    But staff members at Hennepin County Medical Center determined that could not possibly account for the fractures and bleeding throughout the 31-year-old’s brain, said three nurses familiar with the case.

    [Read more]

     

    Conditions inside Whipple Federal Building are “unacceptable,” Minnesota lawmaker says after visit

    A Minnesota congresswoman got her first look inside the Whipple Federal Building, calling the conditions heartbreaking and unacceptable.

    The building is a hub for federal agents in town and is supposed to be a temporary home for people detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

    “There were people in leg shackles. There were cold cement floors, no beds, no blankets; they did have showers, but told me no one had ever taken a shower,” Democratic Rep. Kelly Morrison said. 

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  • Don Lemon says he offered to turn himself in but federal agents were sent for him anyway

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    Don Lemon says about a dozen federal agents came to his Los Angeles hotel to arrest him last week even though his attorney had told authorities he would turn himself in to face federal civil rights charges over his coverage of an anti-immigration enforcement protest that disrupted a service at a Minnesota church.

    Lemon told ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel that sending the agents was a waste of resources because law enforcement wouldn’t have had to dispatch agents to follow him if he’d been allowed to surrender to authorities.

    “I was walking up to the room and I pressed the elevator button and then all of a sudden I feel myself being jostled and people (were) trying to grab me and put me in handcuffs,” the independent journalist said Monday on the show on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”

    He asked the agents who they were and said they identified themselves. Lemon asked to see a warrant and was told they didn’t have it. The agents then summoned an FBI agent to come in from outside to show Lemon the warrant on a cell phone.

    Don Lemon departs federal court on Jan. 30, 2026, in Los Angeles. 

    Mario Tama / Getty Images


    The Department of Justice and FBI didn’t immediately respond to messages seeking comment.

    Kimmel introduced Lemon, his first guest of the night, by saying he was “was arrested for committing journalism.”

    Lemon’s attorney has said Lemon plans to plead not guilty. He told reporters “I will not be silenced” after he was released in response to a judge’s orders.

    A grand jury in Minnesota indicted Lemon, another independent journalist, Georgia Fort, and others on charges of conspiracy and interfering with the First Amendment rights of worshippers during the Jan. 18 protest at the Cities Church in St. Paul, where a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement official is a pastor.

    Lemon, who was fired from CNN in 2023 following a bumpy run as a morning host, has said he had no affiliation to the group that disrupted the Sunday service by entering the church.

    Lemon said he couldn’t say much about the case but he said he was not a protester.

    “I went there to be a journalist. I went there to chronicle and document and record what was happening. I was following that one group around, and so that’s what I did. I reported on them,” Lemon said.

    Abbe Lowell, Lemon’s lawyer, said after his arrest that, “This unprecedented attack on the First Amendment and transparent attempt to distract attention from the many crises facing this administration will not stand. Don will fight these charges vigorously and thoroughly in court.”

    Lemon said he asked the arresting officers if they would let him make a phone call. He said he was told no and that he could talk to his attorney the next day. He tried to use Siri on his Apple Watch to call his husband and his attorney but neither picked up.

    A diamond bracelet he was wearing kept getting caught on his handcuffs, which hurt, and the agents told Lemon they would take it off. Lemon said he asked if the agent would mind taking it up to Lemon’s husband in his hotel room and they agreed to do that.

    “And that’s how my husband found out. Otherwise, no one would have known where I was,” Lemon said.

    Lemon said he was kept in a holding room at the federal courthouse from midnight until 1 p.m. the following day.

    Kimmel himself became a symbol of a fight against censorship last year, when ABC suspended “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” for remarks made following the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr had pressured broadcasters to take Kimmel off the air shortly before that.

    ABC lifted the suspension after a public outcry, and Kimmel returned to the air with much stronger ratings than he had before. In Congress, Democratic senators raised concerns that Carr’s actions had trampled on the First Amendment.

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  • Minneapolis schools face impact of escalating immigration crackdown

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    Protestors rallied outside of Target headquarters in Minneapolis, demanding the new CEO take a stand against the immigration crackdowns. Meanwhile, in suburban Minneapolis, schools are feeling the impact of escalating tensions. Omar Villafranca reports.

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  • Minnesota AG Keith Ellison vows to continue legal battle after judge denies request to stop Operation Metro Surge

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    The state of Minnesota is vowing to continue the legal battle after it and twelve cities, including St Paul and Minneapolis, were denied a temporary restraining order that would have shut down Operation Metro Surge.

    In her ruling, Judge Kate Menendez said that the state had not proved that Operation Metro Surge had crossed a constitutional line, “and had not met the burden of proof needed” for her to issue a temporary restraining order.

    The lawsuit was filed five days after the death of Renee Good and 12 days before Alex Pretti’s death. 

    “We fight on, so it’s important for your viewers to know we didn’t get the temporary emergency action we wanted, but that doesn’t stop the case. The case continues on, the lawsuit continues on,” Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said.

    Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem celebrated the ruling, saying, “This is a win for public safety and law and order.”

    “I am praying that nobody gets hurt or killed tonight or tomorrow morning, or no 5-year-olds get snatched up again in the next 48 or 72 hours,” Ellison said on Sunday. “I am deeply concerned about that, but I am not going to stop.”

    Ellison believes communication between federal and state officials is improving. 

    After Commander Greg Bovino was replaced, the acting director of ICE, Tom Homan, took over. The attorney general met with Homan in what both parties say was a productive meeting.

    “Kristi Noem never called, never wanted to talk; Bovino never called, never wanted to talk, so at least now we are having adult conversations with administration leaders. We didn’t agree on everything, but we did agree on some things,” Ellison said.

    So, the legal case will now continue and so will Operation Metro Surge.

    You can watch WCCO Sunday Morning with Esme Murphy and Adam Del Rosso every Sunday at 6 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.

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  • Health care workers express grief, anger at vigil for Alex Pretti

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    Health care workers came together at a vigil Sunday, expressing grief and anger, saying Alex Pretti was killed senselessly.

    “I was angry, upset because this could’ve happened to me. I would’ve done the exact same thing. I’m a nurse, I help people. If I see someone that needs help, I’m going to help them,” Catherine Cheaye said.

    Catherine Cheaye was one of about 100 health care workers who all felt the same pain, sorrow and anger at the deadly shooting.

    Christa Rymal, a registered nurse and founder of the We Care Nonprofit Foundation, organized the vigil for Pretti’s peers at the Orchestra Hall in downtown Minneapolis.

    “I was at the capital just last week with about 75 physician leaders and they said the moral injury they’re feeling right now in this moment is more intense than they felt during the pandemic,” Rymal said.

    The vigil included moments of reflection, music and a brief speech by Sen. Amy Klobuchar.

    “My heart just sank because he’s one of our own,” Rymal said. “And I know the world wants to argue who’s right or who’s righter, and I just saw the nurse in him. I don’t even care about all the rest. I really don’t. I saw his nursing heart.”

    For some, like 24-year-old James Cheaye, he came along with his mother, Catherine Cheaye, because he’s felt more anxious in the later parts of his young life.

    “It always has to happen in Minnesota, which is always just really sad and really scary. So it was just really impactful to see someone trying to help other people and, unfortunately, lost their lives because of it,” James Cheaye said.

    “He’s young and this affects everyone,” his mom, Catherine Cheaye, added. “And if there was injustice for one individual group, it could lead to everybody. So, for us to make change, everyone has to speak up, even though it doesn’t affect me personally.”

    We Care’s mission is to take care of health care professionals and, right now, grieving and processing Pretti’s death is at the top of their list.

    “Sometimes moments like this feel really long, but what I can tell you as a nurse is life is a really short ride, and I’ve held a lot of hands at the end of life,” Rymal said. “We are far more alike than we are different at the end of our life. So if we could actually live that way, wouldn’t that be powerful?”

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