ICE battering‑ram raid on north Minneapolis home sparks habeas fight
Armed ICE agents used a door‑breaching battering ram to force their way into the north Minneapolis home of 38‑year‑old Liberian national Garrison Gibson over the weekend, arresting him in front of relatives — including a 9‑year‑old — after his family refused entry without a judge‑signed warrant and live‑streamed the encounter on Facebook. Gibson’s attorney says he has lived in Minnesota under ICE supervision for more than 15 years on a 2009 removal order, with a past drug conviction now cleared and recent check‑ins kept, and argues in a newly filed federal habeas petition that the raid was an 'egregious' Fourth‑Amendment violation because agents had no judicial warrant to enter the dwelling. A federal judge has ordered DHS not to move Gibson from the Freeborn County jail in Albert Lea while government lawyers prepare a response in the coming days, putting ICE’s home‑entry tactics in Minneapolis squarely before the courts as video of the battering‑ram raid ricochets across social media. The case cuts to the core of Operation Metro Surge’s legality and scope, raising the stakes for thousands of Twin Cities residents now watching federal agents show up on ordinary doorsteps without the kind of warrant local police would need.
📌 Key Facts
- Video shows armed federal agents using a battering ram on Sunday morning to break into Garrison Gibson’s north Minneapolis home after his family demanded a judicial warrant.
- Court filings identify Gibson as a 38‑year‑old Liberian citizen with a final removal order dating to 2009 who has lived under ICE supervision in Minnesota for over 15 years and had recent ICE check‑ins scheduled.
- Within 24 hours, his attorneys filed a federal habeas petition alleging a Fourth‑Amendment violation, and a judge has ordered DHS not to transfer him while DHS attorneys draft a response; he remains held at the Freeborn County jail in Albert Lea.
📊 Relevant Data
ICE administrative warrants do not grant authority to enter private residences without consent, unlike judicial warrants signed by a judge, which are required for forced entry under the Fourth Amendment.
The Difference Between Judicial and Administrative Warrants — Motion Law Immigration
In fiscal year 2025, ICE conducted over 1,000 arrests in Minnesota as part of Operation Metro Surge, targeting individuals with final removal orders, many from African immigrant communities, amid investigations into welfare fraud and human smuggling.
2,000 federal agents sent to Minneapolis area to carry out 'largest immigration operation ever,' ICE says — PBS NewsHour
Minnesota is home to approximately 20,000 Liberian immigrants, representing about 4% of the state's foreign-born population, with many resettled in the Twin Cities due to civil wars in Liberia during the 1990s and early 2000s, leading to concentrated communities vulnerable to targeted enforcement.
Hmong, Karen, Latino, Liberian, and Somali Communities in the Twin Cities: Populations at a Glance — Wilder Research
African immigrants, including Somalis and Liberians, comprise about 25% of Minnesota's immigrant population but accounted for over 40% of ICE arrests in the state in 2025, with per capita arrest rates 1.6 times higher than other immigrant groups.
ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Statistics — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
The Twin Cities' foreign-born population grew by 15% from 2020 to 2025, with African immigrants making up 30% of this growth, driven by refugee resettlement programs under the Refugee Act of 1980, contributing to demographic shifts and increased ICE scrutiny in fraud-related cases.
The past, present, and future of immigration in Minnesota — Minnesota Compass
In 2025, 40% of ICE interior arrests nationwide involved individuals with no criminal record, but in Minnesota's Operation Metro Surge, this figure was 55%, often linked to administrative violations in resettled refugee communities.
New ICE arrest data show the power of state and local governments — Prison Policy Initiative
📰 Source Timeline (1)
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