A. Rahman
A federal judge is looking into placing short-term limits on how government officers can apply force during gatherings in Portland, Oregon, in the wake of incidents where agents released teargas into a group that had kids present over the weekend.
Crowds numbering in the thousands assembled outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement center on Saturday, in an event that the city’s mayor, Keith Wilson, called largely non-violent, with most participants breaking no rules or presenting any risk to the officers. This assembly formed part of a larger series of rallies nationwide reacting to the Trump administration’s strict immigration policies and the deaths of two American citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, at the hands of federal personnel in Minneapolis. In response, agents in Portland fired teargas, pepper projectiles, and less-lethal rounds toward the demonstrators near the South Waterfront location.
During a court session on Monday, lawyer Matthew Borden highlighted the severity, stating that agents were dispersing gas among kids, seniors, and whole families.
The Monday proceedings tie into a continuing legal battle that kicked off in November, when the American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon launched a collective lawsuit against the Trump administration representing those protesting and media members. The action seeks to halt what the ACLU describes as the administration’s repeated aggressive actions that have marked the federal response at the Portland ICE site.
At the Saturday rally, an observer recounted being roughly 100 yards from the building when individuals resembling those armed with launchers began blanketing the area with gas. One canister even shattered a nearby apartment window. Erin Hoover Barnett shared her fear in an email, describing the chaos of parents scrambling to shield young ones in strollers and folks in mobility aids struggling to escape amid the confusion.
Following the event, Mayor Wilson called for the agents to depart the city, arguing that their violent methods and disregard for rights had stripped them of credibility, replacing it with disgrace.
Another rally on Sunday saw marchers move from city hall to the ICE facility, only to encounter chemical agents from the officers.
The ACLU and fellow lawyers referenced these occurrences in documents filed over the weekend for the case. One document detailed how, after a few people positioned themselves in the driveway, Department of Homeland Security personnel came out using explosive distractions, heavy teargas toward both ends of the gathering, and projectiles from an elevated position into the crowd, labeling it as consistent with vengeful tactics.
Witness statements in the filings included one from a participant who felt the agents aimed to inflict pain, as they kept launching gas even as people retreated.
US District Judge Michael H Simon indicated he would decide on granting a provisional halt order by Tuesday.
Such chemical agents have frequently appeared in Portland’s protest history. Back in 2020, amid responses to George Floyd’s death, local police heavily relied on the substance, prompting health worries. A review of a specific June 2020 occurrence found downtown areas exposed to concentrations exceeding 50 times the federal threshold deemed immediately hazardous to life or well-being.
Quick Summary
A judge in Portland is set to rule on limiting federal agents’ force after they used teargas and other munitions on peaceful protesters, including families, at an ICE facility over the weekend. The incidents fuel an ACLU lawsuit against the Trump administration’s tactics, echoing past concerns from 2020 protests amid nationwide outrage over immigration enforcement.
