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Judge restricts federal response to Minnesota protests amid ongoing outcry over ICE shootings | CNN

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Judge restricts federal response to Minnesota protests amid ongoing outcry over ICE shootings | CNN


A federal judge ruled Friday that agents carrying out the Trump administration’s sweeping immigration operation in Minnesota can’t arrest or deploy certain crowd-control measures against anyone “engaging in peaceful and unobstructive protest activity.” The order comes as outcry continues to build over two shootings by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Minneapolis over the course of a week.

The new restrictions on federal agents also come amid word that the Department of Justice is investigating Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey over possible obstruction of federal law enforcement, sources familiar with the matter told CNN. The probe raises the possibility of criminal consequences for the two Democratic leaders, who have openly rebuked the surge of federal activity that began last month.

Groups of protesters continued to decry the immigration crackdown in Minneapolis during the day and into the night Friday, despite frigid temperatures. Demonstrations intensified last week after 37-year-old mother of three Renee Good was fatally shot in her car by an ICE agent, and again a week later when another agent shot and injured a Venezuelan man accused of “violently” resisting arrest, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

Federal agents working in the Trump administration’s Operation Metro Surge in Minnesota are not allowed to arrest or retaliate against peaceful protesters or use “pepper-spray or similar nonlethal munitions and crowd dispersal tools” against them, US District Judge Katherine Menendez ruled in a preliminary injunction issued Friday.

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Menendez also said the agents can no longer stop and detain drivers when there is “no reasonable articulable suspicion” they are forcibly obstructing or interfering with federal operations. “The act of safely following” the officers, “at an appropriate distance does not, by itself, create reasonable suspicion to justify a vehicle stop,” the judge added.

The order only applies in Minnesota and only to agents involved in the current operation, and does not apply to other federal officers handling routine duties elsewhere, the order specified.

In a response to the ruling, the Department of Homeland Security said it is “taking appropriate and constitutional measures to uphold the rule of law and protect our officers and the public from dangerous rioters.”

Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said that despite these threats, agents follow training and use “the minimum amount of force necessary to protect themselves, the public, and federal property.”

The preliminary injunction was requested by activists who filed a lawsuit last month alleging the federal government was violating their constitutional rights. The case is separate from a different lawsuit filed by Minnesota and the Twin Cities on Monday seeking a court-ordered end to what it calls a “federal invasion” during Operation Metro Surge.

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With protests expected to continue, here’s what else to know:


  • Walz and Frey respond: Neither the Minnesota governor nor the Minneapolis mayor confirmed the reported DOJ investigation for possible obstruction of federal law enforcement, but both accused the Trump administration of trying to intimidate its political opponents. A host of Democratic governors and members of Congress issued statements casting the reported investigation as an abuse of power.

  • Outcry over federal tactics: Democratic members of Congress held a field hearing at Minnesota’s state capitol Friday to highlight alleged abuses happening during the immigration crackdown. American citizens going about their daily business are getting tackled or detained due to their ethnicities, lawmakers and local residents said at the hearing. A DHS spokesperson insisted federal agents do not use racial profiling to make arrests.

  • Ongoing protests: Protesters gathered again Friday at Minneapolis’ Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building, the staging facility for immigration operations. Federal officers in tactical gear forcefully moved a group of protesters away from the street, and at least one person appeared to be detained after triggering a heavy response from at least five agents. CNN reached out to DHS for details.

  • No Insurrection Act “right now,” Trump says: The president reiterated Friday he’s willing to use the Insurrection Act to send US troops into Minnesota but said, “I don’t think there’s any reason right now to use it.” Trump has threatened multiple times to invoke the centuries-old law if state and local leaders don’t quell unrest.



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Utah Mammoth take down Minnesota 5-2 to end the Wild’s winning streak at 6

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Utah Mammoth take down Minnesota 5-2 to end the Wild’s winning streak at 6



The Wild were taken down by the Utah Mammoth 5-2 on Friday night to end Minnesota’s winning streak at six games. 

Lawson Crouse scored twice and U.S. Olympian Clayton Keller had a goal and two assists for Utah.

Logan Cooley and Barrett Hayton also scored and Karel Vejmelka made 21 saves to help the Mammoth rebound from a 4-2 home loss to NHL-leading Colorado on Wednesday night in their return from the Olympic break. Utah began the night in the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference.

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U.S. Olympian Matt Boldy scored and assisted on Kirill Kaprizov’s goal for Minnesota. Second behind Central Division-rival Colorado in the West, the Wild are 9-2-1 in their last 12. They beat the Avalanche 5-2 on Thursday night in Denver.

Cooley opened the scoring with a short-handed goal with 6:37 left in the first period. The former University of Minnesota star got the puck on the right side off a deflection and put a shot between Wallstedt’s legs for his 15th goal.

Keller scored his 18th at 4:26 of the second. Nick Schmaltz forced a turnover on a forecheck and fed Keller on the right side.

Crouse made it 3-0 at 7:49 of the second. He came down the middle, took a pass from Keller and beat Wallstedt with a backhander.

Kaprizov countered for Minnesota on a power play with 5:57 left in the second. He has 33 goals this season.

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Hayton made it 4-1 on a power play at 1:19 of the third, and Crouse added his 16th of the season on a tip with 7:12 to go.

Boldy got his 35th of the season with 5:57 remaining.

Up next

Wild: Host St. Louis on Sunday.

Mammoth: Host Chicago on Sunday.

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Shorthanded Clippers can’t keep pace with Anthony Edwards and Minnesota

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Shorthanded Clippers can’t keep pace with Anthony Edwards and Minnesota


Anthony Edwards scored 31 points, Donte DiVincenzo added 18 and the surging Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Clippers 94-88 on Thursday night.

Jaden McDaniels and Ayo Dosunmu each scored 12 points and Rudy Gobert had 13 rebounds to help the Timberwolves improve to 5-1 since Feb. 9 and 3-1 since the All-Star break.

Edwards, returning to the site of the All-Star Game, where he was the MVP, was 12 for 24 from the floor and sealed the victory with a step-back three-pointer over two defenders for a 92-88 lead with 42.9 seconds left.

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Minnesota improved to 2-0 on a three-game trip.

Derrick Jones Jr. scored 18 points and Bennedict Mathurin added 14 for the Clippers, who struggled from the outset with a season-low 38 points in the first half. Kris Dunn had 11 points for the Clippers (27-31), who have lost three consecutive games for the first time since December.

The Clippers struggled on offense without star Kawhi Leonard, out because of ankle soreness. The Clippers shot 40.5% from the floor, including 18.2% (four for 22) in the second quarter. Minnesota shot 43.4% in the game.

The Timberwolves (37-23) scored just 15 points in the second quarter and still topped the Clippers, who had 11. Minnesota led 44-38 at halftime behind 12 points from DiVincenzo and 11 from Edwards.

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The Clippers led by six in the third quarter and were up 68-63 heading into the fourth. Edwards’ drive and reverse layup put the Timberwolves up for good at 76-74 with 7:40 remaining.

The Clippers pulled within one three times in the last 2½ minutes, but Edwards answered each time. He scored the Timberwolves’ last nine points.

Up next for Clippers: vs. New Orleans on Sunday night.

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Church congregant filed lawsuit against alleged Minnesota church protesters

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Church congregant filed lawsuit against alleged Minnesota church protesters


A St. Paul church member has filed a federal lawsuit alleging that a group of individuals, including journalist Don Lemon and activist Nekima Levy Armstrong, unlawfully disrupted service last month as part of a coordinated political demonstration.

The complaint, filed by Ann Doucette in the U.S. District Court of Minnesota, alleges that a Jan. 18 demonstration at Cities Church interfered with her ability to worship and caused her to suffer damages, including emotional distress and trauma.

In addition to the former CNN anchor and Armstrong, the complaint names journalist Georgia Fort and activists Will Kelly, Jerome Richardson, Trahern Crews and Jamael Lundy. It also names St. Paul school board member Chauntyll Allen.

Doucette and seven of the defendants did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Doucette filed the complaint without the representation of an attorney. In an emailed statement to NBC News, Crews denied the lawsuit’s allegations “with empathy and compassion.”

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The lawsuit accuses the group of civil conspiracy, aiding and abetting, intentional infliction of emotional distress, interference with religious exercise and trespassing.

“As a result of Defendants’ actions, the worship service was disrupted, congregants experienced fear and distress, and Plaintiff’s ability to freely exercise her religion in a private place of worship was unlawfully interfered with,” the lawsuit states.

All eight defendants are also facing federal charges for conspiracy against the rights of religious freedom at a place of worship and for interfering with the exercise of the right of religious freedom. Lemon has pleaded not guilty to all charges, saying outside the court, “I wanted to say this isn’t just about me, this is about all journalists, especially in the United States.”

Fort, Crews and Lundy were released on bond and entered not guilty pleas, according to The Associated Press.

Don Lemon reporting from an anti-ICE demonstration at Cities Church in St. Paul, Minn.@TheDonLemonShow via YouTube

This is the latest legal action tied to protests in the Twin Cities, where tensions remain over the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown and the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.

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According to the lawsuit, the demonstrators engaged in “coordinated conduct” by organizing meetings ahead of the “Operation Pullup” protest and promoting it on social media.

The lawsuit alleges that on the morning of Jan. 18, a coordinated group of individuals entered Cities Church, halting the worship service, and chanting “‘ICE Out!’ and ‘Hands Up, Don’t Shoot!’” while obstructing aisles. Protesters could allegedly be seen “confronting the pastor and congregants in a menacing manner,” the lawsuit says, noting that their chanting and “aggressive gestures” caused “severe emotional distress, fear, anxiety, and trauma” and caused children “terror.”

Demonstrators gathered at the church because they said its pastor, David Easterwood, was the acting director of an ICE field office in the city, the lawsuit says.

Lemon was arrested in January in California and accused of violating federal civil rights law after covering the protest on Jan. 18. He was released on a personal recognizance bond before a federal grand jury in Minnesota returned the indictment against Lemon and eight co-defendants, all of whom are also named in Doucette’s lawsuit.

Nekima Levy Armstrong, Cities Church protest arraignment, St. Paul, Minn., February 2026
Nekima Levy Armstrong in St. Paul, Minn., on Feb. 13.Carlos Gonzalez / Star Tribune via Getty Images

In the lawsuit, Doucette alleges that Lemon specifically livestreamed the protest, “noting congregants’ fear and distress, and appeared to take satisfaction in the disruption.”

Levy Armstrong, a Minneapolis-based civil rights attorney and activist, was also arrested for her participation in the St. Paul protest. Her arrest drew national attention after the White House shared on social media doctored photos where she appeared to be crying.

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