ICE Cracks Down on “Legal Observers” Following Agents During Enforcement Operations

Agents with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) are detaining and arresting “legal observers” who use vehicles to follow officers during federal immigration enforcement operations.

Authorities are detaining and arresting several protestors in Minnesota under Title 18, Section 111 of the U.S. Code, which makes it a federal crime to forcibly assault, resist, oppose, impede, intimidate, or interfere with designated federal officers or employees performing official duties.

In a growing trend protestors are following ICE agents in vehicles as “legal observers” of federal law enforcement operations after the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis in late January.

“When agitators willingly involve themselves and inject themselves in law enforcement operations, they are risking arrest as well as jeopardizing the safety of themselves and those around them,” Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin told Reuters.

At least 655 people were charged under Title 18 by the administration of President Donald Trump, nearly twice as many as during the same period in 2024–2025, a Reuters review of federal court records.

Penalties range from one year for simple assault to up to 20 years if a deadly weapon is used or bodily injury is inflicted.

Kate Menendez, a U.S. District Court Judge in Minnesota issued an injunction in January preventing federal agents from stopping vehicles that follow them if the vehicles maintain a “safe” and “appropriate” distance, according to Politico.

The Department of Homeland Security appealed Menendez’s ruling and the US Circuit Court of Appeals for the 8th circuit blocked the injunction10 days after its issuance.

The appellate court will decide whether to issue a long-term stay or restore the original ruling.

Menendez’s original injunction did not specify what constitutes an appropriate safe distance for following federal agents, Reuters reports.

While many protesters invoke the First Amendment to justify their activities as “legal observers,” legal experts say the role does not confer special legal protections in encounters with law enforcement.

Although citizens have the right to observe and record law enforcement conduct in public, legal experts say this right does not extend to citizens who purposefully obstruct authorities from performing their duties.

First Amendment Rights of anti-ICE protestors have drawn renewed attention after the arrests of former CNN host Don Lemon and others who protested during a church service following Renee Good’s death.

Lemon said he was protected under the First Amendment as an “act of journalism”, although legal experts said the protests violated federal laws prohibiting obstruction of houses of worship.