MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — Garrison Gibson, a Liberian man, has once again found himself in custody after U.S. immigration agents apprehended him amidst a heated standoff just a day after a federal judge ruled his initial arrest was unlawful. The situation unfolded dramatically, with Gibson's lawyer, Marc Prokosch, detailing the chaos that surrounded Gibson’s check-in appointment at an immigration office.
Judge Jeffrey Bryan ruled that federal agents had overstepped their bounds when they forcibly entered Gibson's home without a judicial warrant. This ruling was based on the previous arrest where armed agents utilized a battering ram to enter Gibson's residence. However, the case took a renewed turn when he was apprehended again during a routine check-in.
“The original officer suggested that everything appeared fine, only to return shortly afterwards with multiple officers insisting on his re-arrest,” Prokosch recounted. “I was taken aback that this was happening again.”
The Department of Homeland Security has confirmed that Gibson's situation is part of a larger operation in the Minneapolis and St. Paul area, where over 2,500 arrests related to immigration enforcement have been made since a crackdown began.
Gibson, now 37, escaped the Liberian civil war as a child and had previously been ordered removed from the U.S. due to a drug conviction from 2008, which was later dismissed. Nonetheless, he has remained in the country legally under an order of supervision, with the condition of regular meetings with immigration authorities.
As tensions rise, tribal leaders and Native American rights organizations are advising members of their communities to carry tribal ID at all times, given reports of increased ICE enforcement actions.
"The reports we've received are deeply concerning," stated Ben Barnes, chief of the Shawnee Tribe in Oklahoma. Reports of ICE detaining individuals have prompted organizers in Minneapolis to offer assistance in obtaining tribal IDs, highlighting a pervasive climate of fear among communities affected by these actions.
With the backdrop of heightened immigration enforcement, President Trump has also suggested invoking the Insurrection Act to combat protests linked to these immigration sweeps, a move that Minnesota's attorney general has warned could face legal challenges.
