ReutersTwo prominent Minnesota Democrats are being investigated over alleged attempts to obstruct federal immigration operations, in an escalation of the Trump administration’s conflict with state leaders.
Minneapolis Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey are facing an investigation by the US Department of Justice over comments he made about Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to CBS News, the BBC’s partner in the US.
The investigation comes as a federal judge limited the actions Immigration and Customs Enforcement can take in Minneapolis, banning the use of pepper spray and arrests of peaceful protesters.
Protests escalated in the city after Renee Judd, 37, was shot to death by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent last week.
New details also emerged on Friday about Judd’s death. Paramedics found the woman in Minneapolis with at least three gunshot wounds and possibly a fourth to the head, according to official reports seen by CBS.
On Friday, Governor Walz responded to news of the investigation against him by posting on X: “Using the judicial system as a weapon against your opponents is a tyrannical tactic.
“The only person not being investigated for the shooting death of Renee Judd is the federal agent who shot her.”
In a statement to the BBC, Mayor Fry said, “I will not be intimidated.”
“This is a clear attempt to intimidate me into standing with Minneapolis, our local law enforcement, and our residents against the chaos and danger this administration has brought to our streets,” he said.
The BBC has contacted the Ministry of Justice regarding the apparent investigation.
The governor urged Minnesotans to protest peacefully, but members of the Trump administration accused him of inflammatory rhetoric, such as calling ICE a “modern-day Gestapo.” Frey demanded that immigration agents leave Minneapolis.
The investigation is focusing on a federal law, 18 USC § 372, which makes it a crime for two or more people to conspire to prevent federal officers from carrying out their official duties through “force, intimidation, or threat,” a U.S. official told CBS.
Protests continued in Minneapolis on Friday as U.S. District Judge Katherine Menendez blocked federal authorities from using pepper spray and other non-lethal force on protesters.
The 83-page order bars thousands of federal officers currently deployed in the city as part of immigration operations from arresting peaceful protesters.
It also prohibits them from stopping or detaining vehicle drivers or passengers “where there is no reasonable suspicion that they are obstructing or interfering forcefully.”
The judge notes that a person following federal law enforcement in his or her vehicle “does not of itself raise a reasonable suspicion to justify stopping the vehicle.”
Before her murder, the footage showed Judd in her four-wheel drive car, and she appeared to be honking the horn to alert neighbors in the area of the presence of immigration authorities.
The Trump administration said Judd was obstructing federal law enforcement and tried to run over the agent before opening fire. Local officials say Judd was a lawful observer and posed no danger.
A video of the incident shows ICE agents approaching a car blocking traffic and stopping in the middle of the street. An officer orders her to get out of the car.
As Judd turns her car’s wheel apparently trying to drive away, her Honda Pilot SUV pulls forward with a customer standing near the front of the vehicle. He pulls out his gun and shoots.
An incident report from the Minneapolis Fire Department, seen by CBS News, said that when they responded to the scene of the shooting last week, Judd appeared to have been shot twice in the chest, once in the left forearm and a fourth wound, possibly from a gunshot wound, was seen “on the left side of the patient’s head.”
Paramedics found Judd unresponsive with an irregular pulse, and she was pronounced dead in the ambulance on the way to the hospital, according to the report seen by CBS.
ReutersFootage from the scene shows the customer leaving.
But Department of Homeland Security officials told CBS that the officer suffered internal bleeding in the torso following the incident. No further details were revealed.
The FBI is investigating the incident, although there is no federal civil rights investigation into the agent who opened fire. Officials and local authorities say they were excluded from the investigation.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump criticized protesters and local leaders on Friday.
On Social Truth, he accused the protesters of being “highly paid professionals,” adding that Walz and Frey had “completely lost control.”
Later, the Republican president told reporters at the White House that he did not intend to activate the Insurrection Act and send troops to quell the unrest in Minnesota. After suggesting earlier this week that he might do so.
“If I need it, I’ll use it. I don’t think there’s any reason now to use it,” he said. “It’s very powerful,” he added.
Bloomberg via Getty ImagesThousands of ICE officers remain deployed in the state.
Democratic lawmakers traveled to the city to hold a hearing there and spent Friday condemning federal immigration operations in the state, accusing ICE of reckless and illegal actions.
Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota congresswoman who has long been at odds with Trump, said ICE was trying to “create chaos and fear.”
Adriano Espaillat, a congressman from New York, said ICE has become a “deadly weapon.”
Washington Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal said ICE agents should not be allowed to wear masks or make arrests without warrants, and should be required to carry body cameras and name tags.
Democratic lawmakers also interviewed several residents who claimed they were restrained and detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement for hours until they could prove they were U.S. citizens.
The BBC has contacted the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement for comment.
Tricia McLaughlin, a DHS spokeswoman, told CNN on Friday that if there is “reasonable suspicion” a person is “in close proximity” to someone detained in a DHS operation, they may be asked to confirm their identity.
She rejected suggestions that such tactics might be discriminatory, saying that “racial animus has no place at DHS.”