Judge orders release of Liberian man arrested in Minneapolis by agents with a battering ram [View all]
Source: NBC News/AP
Jan. 16, 2026, 10:49 AM EST
A federal judge in Minnesota on Thursday ordered the release of a Liberian man four days after heavily armed immigration agents broke into his home using a battering ram and arrested him.
U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Bryan said in his ruling that the agents violated Garrison Gibson's Fourth Amendment rights against unlawful search and seizure. "To arrest him, Respondents forcibly entered Garrison G.'s home without his consent and without a judicial warrant," he said.
The Department of Homeland Security has been ramping up immigration arrests in Minnesota in what the department has called its largest enforcement operation. DHS says its officers have arrested more than 2,500 people since Nov. 29.
Marc Prokosch, Gibson's attorney, said he was "thrilled" by the judge's order. He had filed a habeas corpus petition, used by courts to determine if an imprisonment is legal, and called the arrest a "blatant constitutional violation" since the agents did not have a proper warrant.
Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/judge-orders-release-liberian-man-arrested-minneapolis-agents-batterin-rcna254401
= new reply since forum marked as read