As federal agents aggressively raid and detain immigrants in cities across the US, people working to prevent these arrests are using the abundant snow on the ground to fight back.
In videos of confrontations in Minnesota and Illinois, people have thrown snowballs at federal agents who are trying to apprehend their neighbors, often as agents are using force or wielding weapons. In many instances, the agents then responded with more aggression, using pepper spray or teargas against protesters.
In Minneapolis on Monday, agents tried to arrest a woman, holding her in a snowbank, according to video of the incident posted by Minnesota Public Radio. At one point, she appears to be partially handcuffed, and an agent drags her around a snowy street. Bystanders shout at the agents to “let her go” as a chorus of car horns and whistles blare to let the neighborhood know agents are there. An agent holds a taser in one hand and points a weapon at the crowd. People start throwing snow at the agents, one of whom holds a canister of orange spray he repeatedly uses on the protesters.
One woman who joined the scene told the Associated Press that ICE agents were aggressive from the start of the interaction. “I didn’t see anybody throw any hard items,” she said. “The snowballs were definitely being thrown, but we didn’t start throwing snowballs until they started dragging her around by her wrist.”
Brian O’Hara, the Minneapolis police chief, spoke out against ICE tactics after the incident. Federal agents called local police to the scene, claiming they were under attack. He said his officers determined the scene was safe, so they “disengaged”.
“We have been training our officers for the last five years very, very intensely on de-escalation, but unfortunately that is … often not what we are seeing from other agencies in the city,” O’Hara said.
Protesters also threw snow at agents in Elgin, Illinois, during a confrontation over a man’s detention. Agents responded with teargas and pepper munitions, local media reported.
As ICE has ramped up its actions, communities have responded with rapid networks seeking to prevent immigrant arrests and deter ICE from patrols – from blowing whistles, to shouting at agents, to throwing snowballs. The American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota sued the Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies this week, alleging on behalf of several Minnesota plaintiffs that agents have violated the rights of those observing and protesting ICE actions in the state.
When asked about people throwing snowballs at federal agents in Minneapolis and Chicago, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security said: “ICE stays frosty … but rioters should be aware, assaulting an officer is a federal crime.”
According to reporting by CBS, agents have arrested US citizens related to the incident, with DHS saying people throwing snow and objects at agents caused injuries, “including cuts”. It’s unclear if people will be criminally charged for throwing snow at agents.
Throwing snowballs can be assault, if the person on the other end is injured or caused bodily harm, or if the intent is to injure, said Joe Tamburino, a Minneapolis criminal defense attorney. Though criminal charges over snowball-throwing are not common, if the subject is a federal agent, it can be a federal felony with steep penalties depending on the outcome, he said.
“I would imagine that the Trump administration is paying particular attention to Minnesota right now, and I would imagine they’re going to look very seriously at any allegation of someone threatening, harming or interfering with federal agents,” he said. “So that’s why people need to be careful out there … No matter where you are in the political spectrum, you’ve got to look after yourself. Federal felonies are not laughing matters.”
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